


The Tales of Gilmore/Danes

by Young_Atlas



Category: Gilmore Girls
Genre: Alternate Universe, F/M, Family Drama, Multi
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-06-06
Updated: 2020-01-07
Packaged: 2020-04-11 17:52:25
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 11
Words: 87,558
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19114732
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Young_Atlas/pseuds/Young_Atlas
Summary: Lorelai ate an apple - and liked it! Her mind drifted again to the previous night. Luke had looked dashingly handsome in his suit and he had been the perfect gentleman amongst the big city folks. In the limo on their way home, he had tasted like peppermint and the delicious kisses had turned into a primordial need, the consequences be damned.And now she stood in a maternity ward, eating an apple, thinking of the circle of life.This is how I imagine S6/S7 would have turned out if that one moment in S05E22 had gone differently. I have a wild ride planned and hope you come along and enjoy it!





	1. New Beginnings

**Author's Note:**

> Chapter 1 is a recap of S05E21/22, going AU from there. I follow along with some storylines of S6, borrowing dialogues and events but mixing them up a little.  
> Sorry if the beginning seems slow and familiar, it will turn, I promise.
> 
> *Warning* - English is not my first language. I try my best but if something doesn't make sense, let me know in the comments. Cheers!

**LUKE’S APARTMENT – 11 th May 2005**

Lorelai woke up to the wrong perspective. Luke's apartment was the wrong way around, or maybe she was, and something strong and heavy was keeping her in place. She blinked the blurriness away but the pounding in her head stubbornly refused to be erased that easily. Lorelai pushed Luke’s arm away and carefully sat up, wrapping the sheets around her naked body. She took another steadying breath before getting to her feet and looked around. She followed the trail of clothes on the floor through the small living room and found her dress near the open door. Images from last night came back to her in bits and pieces and she winced as an alarming realization bubbled to the surface.

\---

**MATERNITY WARD – 12 th May**

The next day Lorelai and Rory were planning on throwing Sookie a late baby shower, but their plans were crossed by the early arrival of Martha, Sookie and Jackson’s second child. Lorelai went with them to the hospital and while Jackson was checking his wife in Lorelai wandered around the reception area looking for coffee. The only vending machine she encountered sold bottled water and a variety of fruit. Lorelai made a face. Of course, a hospital had only the _good_ kind of food. She half-turned around when a green shiny apple caught her eye. She hesitated for a second, then fumbled for some coins at the bottom of her purse and got the forbidden fruit.

Lorelai ate an apple - AND she liked it. Luke would be so proud. While Sookie was being checked by a nurse, Lorelai stepped outside and grabbed the first person wearing a white lab coat by the arm. Although the doctor was nice and sweet, he wasn’t very helpful. She was told that she had to wait for at least two weeks before a pregnancy test would be conclusive. Lorelai wasn’t good with waiting, so she did the next best thing to distract herself and called Rory. After she made sure Rory was caught up about protection, she reluctantly admitted that she might be pregnant. While Rory seemed more excited than shocked, Lorelai tried to argue that it was not the right time for her to have another baby. She wasn’t sure why she was trying to convince Rory why that was though.

The next morning, after Martha was finally born, Lorelai called Rory again, telling her the good news. “Fourteen hours of labor was the downside,” she said, “but Sookie has the rest of her little girl’s life to get back at her for that.”

Rory, standing outside a meeting room, was happy. “I love the circle of life. Speaking of which; how are you?”

“I’m fine,” Lorelai replied, sounding flat.

Rory sighed, “Mom, seriously, what was with the apple?”

“I don’t know. But I just had a Moonpie and a Ding-Dong and washed it down with an Orange Crush in the cafeteria, so no desire for anything nutritional.”

“Oh, okay. What does that mean?” Rory asked, seemingly disappointed.

Lorelai tried to dodge the topic, “I don’t know, kid. So, listen. How about we reschedule Sookie’s baby shower?”

“How? It’s too late.”

“No. We’ll throw a ‘Welcome to the Earth, Baby Girl Belleville’ party. Did you save the decorations?”

“Still in my car,” Rory responded.

“How about Saturday morning? That’s when she gets home. Just come back with me tonight after dinner, we’ll set it up at her house.”

“Sounds good. Hey, um, did you talk to Luke about, you know?” Rory tried to redirect their conversation to the previous topic.

“My God, no. Can you imagine? ‘Uh, Luke, you’re going to be a daddy.’ Suddenly there’s nothing left but a puff of smoke and a baseball cap spinning on the floor.”

“Yeah. He never seemed much like a family guy. But you never know… maybe he takes it well. Maybe he’d even be happy. Listen, um, I’ve got to get back. We have a big staff meeting in a few minutes and I want to get back and make sure everything’s set up and ready.”

“I’ll see you tonight.”

They said their goodbyes and Lorelai was left standing in the maternity ward looking around. Maybe, she thought, maybe he’d be happy. And then a small smile formed on her lips.

\---

**ON THE ROAD TO STARS HOLLOW – 20 th May**

How did this day go from bad to worse to this? Lorelai tried to remain calm, but it didn’t help that she felt sick to the stomach. Rory had been in jail. Her baby girl had been arrested and spent some hours behind bars. After the initial freak out, she went into full I-am-here-for-you-my-friend mode, by trying to play it cool, make some jokes. That’s what she does and what she was good at. But then her daughter decided to drop out of college, leave Yale, without a plan B. This was not Rory, her pro and con list writing daughter, dreaming of being the next Cristiane Amanpour. She thought Rory was stronger than this, she thought she gave her daughter all the means she needed to succeed. Where did she go wrong? What did she miss? And now, because of the opinion of one jerk, all went up in smoke. All they had worked for, all the hours studying, all the Friday night dinners, Chilton – was for nothing. Rory was supposed to have more than her, _be_ more than her. On top of all Rory went behind her to back to her grandparents. After Lorelai sat down with her parents and discussed what was the best course of action, they stabbed her in the back. Why did she expect anything different? For once she thought that the education of Rory was priority number one for all of them. That they were pulling in the same direction. Lorelai felt stupid, betrayed and abandoned.

The road sign entering Stars Hollow usually made her feel warm and welcome. It was home, where nothing bad ever happened. At least that’s how it used to be. She didn’t want to go home, to an empty house yet full of disappointment. In desperate need of comfort, Lorelai parked the Jeep in front of Miss Patty’s and went to the one place that was always good.

\---

**LUKE’S DINER - 20 th May**

When Lorelai entered the diner, defeat was written all over her face. She sat down on the nearest chair and said quietly, “Rory dropped out of Yale.” Luke immediately stopped wiping the counter and stepped up to her, “What?!” Lorelai explained what happened, how everything went wrong, Luke stared at her in disbelief. “Okay, I’m sorry. I have to jump in here,” he started and continued venting on how they were going to get Rory back and put her through college. How they will camp out in turns to make sure she went to classes. Lorelai had to smile. She looked up at the man in front of her, who was willing to drop everything for her and her daughter, to make sure they were okay. She needed him in so many ways. Luke was her best friend and the most stable person in her life. He was always there and for that, she was eternally grateful. “This was her dream. I am not going to let this happen,” he finished, almost shaking from anger, taking a deep breath. He looked at Lorelai, who was gazing at him with a half-smile. “What?!”

“Luke, will you marry me?”

“What?” he repeated, baffled.


	2. Yes To All

**LUKE’S DINER - 20 th May**

“Luke will you...”, Lorelai started repeating the question.

“Yes!” Luke exclaimed.

“Well, you don't have to answer so...”

“Yes!”, he repeated eagerly.

“We can take a minute to...”

“No!”

They looked at each other happily and surprised.

“So… what now?”, Lorelai asked.

“I don't know. This is new for me.”

“We should do something official,” she decided.

“Official…” Luke repeated in thought.

“Yeah! Something to commemorate the moment. I mean we're getting married.” Lorelai rose from her chair, looking straight at him. “Luke. Married. You and me... Luke-table-for-one-Danes and Lorelai-I'm-sorry-can-I-get-an-industrial-forklift-for-my-emotional-baggage-Gilmore are getting…” She took a deep breath, “…married.”

They looked at each other awkwardly. After a beat, Luke suggested that they could toast, but they thought that neither Grapefruit juice nor Worcestershire sauce were very festive. Lorelai grabbed Luke’s arm, dragging him to exit the diner, but he stopped her at the door.

“What? Did you change your mind? Oh! How did I screw up so fast! Was the Funkytown thing too quippy, cause I thought you liked that about me but....”

“No, the Funkytown thing was fine! I just... Are you sure you want to celebrate now? I mean a minute ago when you came in here...”

“I just want to be happy right now. Okay?”

“Okay.”

They left the diner and went over to Doose’s, which was obviously closed this late at night. Taylor spotted them across the square, knocking at the supermarket's door and let them inside after he was told the reason for their need of something sparkly. Unfortunately, the bikers had wiped him off all the good choices. “Oh, Taylor, you have to have something!”, Lorelai begged, not believing her bad luck. “Lorelai I'm sorry but... ooohh wait a minute! I think I have a case of Zima in the back” Taylor disappeared in the storage room to check, while Lorelai started jumping up and down excitedly. He came back with a case in his arms explaining that Babette had him stocking it for a while. “We'll take it!”, Lorelai proclaimed, and Luke groaned: “Let's just drive to Woodbridge. They have a liquor barn there.” But Lorelai made it clear that she wanted to celebrate now, and that the Zima will do.

They stood in the gazebo, in the middle of town, toasting with bottles of Zima, celebrating their engagement.

\---

**LUKE'S APARTMENT – 20 th May**

Lorelai was lying in bed half asleep with a content smile on her face. Luke sat next to her, looking a bit anxious, fidgeting.

“So I said ‘What about the kids?’, I didn't mean ‘What about our kids?’. I mean yes obviously ‘What about _OUR_ kids?’. But I didn't mean we had to have any kids, cause we don't, but we can. I just didn't want you to think that I was laying down some kind of a mandate. I mean kids, it's plural, so it sounds like a lot, but we can just have one kid, one's fine, or more if you want more, or we don't have to have any kids. We could just get a plant.”

Lorelai hadn't paid attention to what Luke was saying and asked with a sleepy voice, “What?”

“Nothing,” he waved a hand.

“OK,” her head slumped back against the pillow.

Luke continued, “I bought a house, Twickham House. I bought it for us. I don't have it anymore. I could probably get it back, but I just thought you should know that I bought it. For the kids that we don't have to have. It's a big house and we don't have to fill it up with kids, we could get furniture, you know, go shopping for a couch or get some end tables. I hate shopping for furniture. For me, kids are easier.

Lorelai still sleepy and unaware of what’s going on mumbled, “I love shopping.”

“Go to sleep.”

“OK.”

Luke still couldn't get comfortable and said more to himself than to anyone, “Is this really happening?”

“Yes, it's really happening,” Lorelai said, while Luke finally started to lie down. Lorelai suddenly was on her elbows, wide awake. “You bought a house without telling me?!”

“What?” Luke sat back up again.

“A house? I mean a house is huge!”

“Yeah, I know that's why I told you.”

“A house full of kids?” Lorelai had finally processed what Luke was talking about and was very confused.

“And a plant! Don't forget the plant,” he tried to calm the situation.

“Please don't do that, okay? I mean any other address or life-changing decisions, please include me in,” she pleaded.

Luke said exasperated, “I will! I am! I'm sorry! I won't! I will.”

“OK,” her drowsiness taking over again.

They settled back down, when Lorelai whispered, “Kids would be good.”

They both smiled.

\---

**DRAGONFLY INN – 21 st May**

It was a sunny morning in Stars Hollow and Lorelai was humming to herself when entering the Dragonfly. Michel stood behind the desk and as he saw her walking in exclaimed loudly: “Lorelai!”, with a big smile on his face. She stopped for a moment, to look at him as he approached her. “Did you take too many vitamins this morning?” she asked sarcastically and headed for the kitchen. Michel followed her closely. “You are soo funny,” he said still grinning, which made Lorelai uncomfortable. “Something the matter?” she asked while pushing the door open to the kitchen. A loud bang tore through the room, resulting in Lorelai jumping backward, colliding with Michel. They both ended up on the floor, when confetti started raining down on them. “Oh my god, Lorelai, are you okay?”, Sookie looked down at her. Derek and another waiter pulled her and Michel up to their feet. Lorelai looked around the room, the whole staff was assembled, the room full of balloons and every last space was filled with pastries. “Sookie, what’s going on?”

“You are getting married!” Sookie shrieked with tears in her eyes. The crowd erupted in applause, they were whistling and cheering. Sookie wrapped her arms around Lorelai’s neck and squeezed. “You are marrying Luke! I can’t believe it. Oh god, you two are so perfect together!” “Sookie, this is amazing! When did you do all this? Shouldn’t you be home resting?” Lorelai tearing up herself gave her friend an even tighter hug. Sookie wiped her face, gesturing to the crowd: “All right boys, dig in!” She held up a cup of coffee to Lorelai. “Now, spill the beans! How did it happen? I want all the details. I am actually so mad at you, for not telling me. But I am also so happy!” She grabbed another tissue and wiped her face again. “How do you even know already? It just happened last night. When did you have time to prepare this?”, Lorelai was still blown away by the surprise. “Jackson told me, he heard it from Abigail, who got it from Sam, who knows it from Taylor, who goes around town saying he was the first one to know.”, Sookie explained. “Oh well, that’s technically true.”, Lorelai made a grimace and laughed. “Oh Sook, I have to tell you so many things,” Lorelai began telling her friend all that happened over the last week and a half with Rory, her parents, and Luke. Carefully leaving out the part of her possibly being pregnant. Sookie cried several times during the conversation, ending up surrounded by mountains of crumpled tissues.

“Okay, Laura Dern, let’s get you home before you completely dehydrate. I promise I’m fine. This is a happy occasion, remember?” Lorelai said, patting her friend’s shoulder. “I’m sorry. I’m still hormonal,” Sookie sighed and sniffled. Michel re-entered the kitchen. “Lorelai, my best wishes! I can’t believe you are marrying that man.” His smile showed real excitement but his words suggested otherwise. Lorelai raised one eyebrow. “Thank you, Michel,” she said slightly irritated. “Oh, there is also a very persistent man on the phone, demanding to speak with you directly,” Michel added. Lorelai groaned and got up, saying goodbye to Sookie, thanking her again for the lovely surprise.

\---

**LORELAI’S HOUSE – 23 rd May**

Luke walked up to Lorelai’s house in big strides and without knocking opened the door. “Full moon, the moment’s here. Let’s go,” he called, and Lorelai emerged from Rory’s room. She tried her best at a smile, but Luke could immediately tell that she was upset. They walked towards his truck, but he stopped her before she could open a door. “You okay?” he asked. Lorelai didn’t look at him. She knew he had something planned and didn’t want to ruin his plans. “It’s nothing, really. I just brought all of Rory’s stuff to Hartford,” she shrugged. “Come here,” Luke pulled her into a hug and kissed the top of her head. They stood silently for some minutes, hugging. “Let’s go,” Lorelai whispered.

They sat in Luke’s truck driving through town, Luke stopped in front of the diner. “Did you forget something?” Lorelai asked.

“Nope, we’re here,” Luke said with a mischievous smile. “We are going to Luke’s?” Lorelai looked puzzled. “Just… Come with me.” Luke took her hand and they crossed the street walking over to Miss Patty’s. They stood next to the stairs on the side of the building. “I know you don’t really remember the day we met, but you gotta remember your first town meeting, right?”

Lorelai started smiling. “Yes, I do. Someone threw a shoe at Taylor and I decided that I had moved to best town ever.”

“Yes. Right,” Luke chuckled. “So, after the town meeting, you stood right here talking to Patty about your new house. Some loose floorboards, low water pressure upstairs, squeaky doors, stuff like that. You were looking for someone to fix it up a bit for a good price.”

“Man, you’ve got good memory.”

“I remember because I was the guy that fixed it all. For free,” he grinned.

“Remind me to thank Patty again,” Lorelai teased leaning against his chest.

“As I was saying, up until that day, I was the guy that gave you coffee every morning. On that day, we became friends. And now I want to give you this,” he pulled out a little black velvet box and opened it. “I love you Lorelai. I will always be there for you; I promise you that. I want to marry you more than I ever wanted anything else. You are it for me. The whole package.”

With these last words, Lorelai couldn’t hold it in anymore. Tears were streaming down her face. “Damn you, Luke Danes. When did you become so romantic?” she wiped her face and held the box in one hand while holding on to Luke with her other. It’s beautiful,” she whispered hoarsely. The ring was a simple silver band with a large diamond in the center and smaller diamonds around, making it look like a flower. “Here,” he took the box again, taking the ring and putting it carefully on her finger. It fit perfectly.

“I love you too,” she pulled him closer, kissing him passionately. After a while, Lorelai pulled away to catch her breath. She smirked at him and raised one eyebrow. “Wanna take this inside?” she nodded in the direction of the dance studio. Luke just smiled and followed her.

The full moon that night was just a bit brighter than usual.

 

* _And the moon's never seen me before *_

_* But I'm reflecting light *_


	3. Of Old And New

**LORELAI'S DRIVEWAY – 25 th May**

Lorelai parked the Jeep in her driveway and held the door open for Paul Anka, the dog. Apparently, he was scared of everything and she was positively surprised to see him jump out of the car without hesitation. She walked towards the house when she noticed a man standing on her roof. “Uh, excuse me,” she said loudly, getting the man’s attention. “Hello, I'm Lorelai, the owner of the house you're standing on.”

“I'm George,” the stranger simply said and didn't look bothered at all.

“Hi, George. I'm just trying to think of how to ask this in a polite way. Uhm, are you committing some sort of crime?” Lorelai questioned him further, finding the whole situation rather odd.

The man denied with a simple ‘no’ but didn’t say anything else, that would indicate why he was there in the first place. Another man appeared on her front porch, obviously coming from inside her house. Lorelai, unsure of what to think of that, whispered to herself, “Fight or flight? Fight or flight?”, when a familiar voice called out to her. “Luke! Wow. I was this close to screaming and siccing the dog on you!”

“Sorry. We're just about done,” Luke apologized and talked to the other man on the roof, who had introduced himself as George.

“Wha... Done with what?” Lorelai asked, wondering why nobody seemed to care that this was _her_ house.

“Sizing the situation,” Luke replied, and Lorelai wondered if he really thought that she'd understand what he meant by that. “What situation?” She looked up at him expectantly.

“About how many silent joists we need to carry out.”

Good grief, she wasn't getting anywhere. “What's a joist?”

“The things that support the load.”

Was he being impossible on purpose? “What load?!”

“The load from the extension.”

Lorelai shook her head, her patience starting to run low. “Okay, this has officially become the worst first draft of "Who's on first?" in history!”

“It's about enlarging the bedroom. To live here,” Luke finally explained.

“Here? You wanna live here?”, Lorelai was surprised to hear that.

“Sure. I don't have a lot of stuff. We just need a little more closet space. A bigger bathroom, bigger bedroom,” Luke shrugged and smiled down at her.

“I always wanted a bigger bedroom,” Lorelai squealed in excitement, then remembered Luke's initial plan. “But what about the Twickham House?”

“Too damn big,” Luke rejected. “We can get along fine here for a while. Maybe forever. It's a great house. You love this house.”

Forever he said. That sounded good. “I do love this house,” she beamed.

“I know. I figured that out from your sudden interest in laying down tracks and becoming a painter,” Luke chuckled and saw that Lorelai was pleased.

“Come down here so I can kiss you. All of you!”

“We'll just be a minute,” Luke laughed and turned back to George.

\---

**STARS HOLLOW – 26 th May**

After the shock of having a huge hole in her bedroom wall wore off, Luke and Lorelai went to Lowe's Home Improvement to get some tarp and duct tape, to cover the hole overnight. They also moved Lorelai’s bed into the living room along with all her other belongings from the bedroom. The plans for the actual extension would take at least another two weeks to be finalized and after that, they had to check with Taylor if they needed a construction permit. What a joy that discussion would be.

Luke managed to sit down with TJ and not garrote him at first sight. They got a small crew together to close the damage the next day.

\---

**LORELAI’S HOUSE – 27 th May - 7 A.M.**

Lorelai was woken up by the noise of hammers. She looked around confused for a moment, the unfamiliar surrounding slowly sinking in. Seeing the living room from that perspective was new. The clock next to her showed a time she didn’t like at all. Lorelai walked out of the house in her pajamas. “Hey, Luke?”, she looked up her house to several men standing on her roof. “Yeah.”, he gave back.

“Are you aware of the time? The sun ain't even warm yet,” she blinked slowly.

TJ stepped up next to her “Seven a.m. was Luke's idea. I'd have started at nine so as not to bother people. That's just one guy who thinks that OK means OK's opinion.”

Luke gave him a dangerous look. “I needed to start early so I could get this done. Man!”

Lorelai looked from TJ back at Luke and said, “Hey! What's with the 'tude?”

“Nothing. It's just... You know you got a frisbee up here?” Luke barked, obviously agitated.

“A what?” Lorelai, still drunk with sleep, looked at him puzzled.

“A frisbee. Just sitting up here! I mean what are you thinking with that?!” Luke was clearly pissed.

“Luke, there is a lost frisbee on the roof of every suburban home in America. No less a luminary than Garrison Keillor said that. It's not that big a deal.”

“Every roof, huh? Well, that's a great use of plastic,” Luke ranted and Lorelai gave him a strange look. he wasn't usually grumpy early in the morning. That was her part. “It's not my frisbee. I've never played frisbee. What the hell has gotten into you?”

Luke scratched the back of his head and exhaled. “I told Rory we were engaged.”

Lorelai's jaw dropped. “What?! How? Where?”

“She came into the diner last night. It was awkward and stupid. I ended up telling her we were engaged,” Luke revealed and expected a verbal outrage.

“Why?! Why would you do that?” Lorelai questioned his actions, not understanding how he could've done that.

“Why? Because she had the face. The Rory-face. You know the face!” Luke defended himself.

“Yes, but, Luke, you have to ignore the Rory face.”

“That's easy for you to say,” he huffed.

“You shouldn't have told her!”

“Yeah, _YOU_ should've told her!”

“NO! She shouldn't have been told anything. So neither of us should've told her!”

“But if one of us isn't gonna tell her more, then I'm the one that shouldn't.”

“Right. Meaning not you. I should've told her,” Lorelai said, getting confused by the argument, but Luke understood that they were finally on the same page. “Then we're in full agreement. You should've told her!” 

Lorelai realized too late what she had just said out loud. “No! That's not what I'm saying.”

“Well you said it, and I agreed, so I win,” Luke folded his arm over his chest, making clear that the argument was over.

“How do you win?!” 

“Because I have the high ground. That gives me the upper hand on anything you got!” With that he turned around and picked up the frisbee.

“Luke,” Lorelai tried to get through to him. “Luke! Rory started this. And right now we're not talking. Remember, tough love? I'm on a path here.”

“Fine! Maybe I shouldn't have told her anything. Maybe I should've kicked her out, ignored her, whatever! But you got to understand something: I'm in the middle! Yeah, she's your daughter, but I'm in the middle!!”

Lorelai looked at the floor apologetically. “I know. You are in the middle.”

“Good! Because you've been acting like you don't know, like you're alone in this or something. And I know you don't want my opinion on this, but you're both being dumb, and you should be talking. There. I won't say anything more about any of this again ever.” TJ was having a hard time with the drill, Luke approached him. “TJ. the screw's not going in right 'cause you got the drill on counterclockwise. It's righty-tighty, lefty-loosey!”, he groaned and looked back at Lorelai. “I gotta get back to work. We're gonna be done with what we're doing here today. We won't be here tomorrow.”

“Luke, I’m sorry!”

“We're okay,” he waved a hand dismissively.

“Good.” Luke threw the frisbee at her and Lorelai caught it mid-air, with an elegant jump.

“Nice catch,” Luke nodded and gave her a smile. Finally, Lorelai thought and smiled back.

\---

**IN THE JEEP – 28 th May**

Time went by much quicker than Lorelai had imagined. The last weeks had been so hectic she hadn’t had much time to think about the pregnancy all that much. Lorelai tried to remember how it was with Rory, but the truth was, she didn’t realize she was pregnant until she didn’t fit in the dress her mother had ordered for her. There was no feeling, no sign, no morning-sickness. The only thing out of the ordinary was the apple craving, and that craving was back. She tried to play it cool for the past weeks. Michel thought she finally listened to one of his many speeches about nutrition and adopted a healthier lifestyle, while Sookie thought it had to do with Jackson’s especially good harvest. She only ate them at the Inn and only the ones they had in the pantry. If she, Lorelai Gilmore, were to be seen buying apples at Doose’s, people would start speculating. She couldn’t risk that kind of attention. She also avoided eating them anywhere near Luke, or before seeing Luke. As if she were afraid, he could smell them on her. Michel and Sookie were easily tricked into believing whatever Lorelai wanted them to believe. Luke, on the other hand, would know something is up and he wouldn’t let it go. There was no confusing him, avoiding the topic or making up a semi-believable story. Luke just knew her too well.

Apart from the grand theft apple, nothing felt different. But today Lorelai had her day off from the inn and after her normal breakfast routine, she climbed into her Jeep and drove out of Stars Hollow. She had prepared a three-step plan.

  1. Go as far away from Stars Hollow as possible.
  2. Take the test.
  3. Decide next steps depending on the result.



The plan wasn’t very detailed, she hadn’t even figured out exactly where to go but she knew that buying a pregnancy test in Stars Hollow was absolutely not an option, neither in a neighboring town in case someone saw her. She took the highway in the direction of New York, trying not to think of what she was about to do, without much success.

Did she want it to be positive? Was she ready? Did she want another child? How would Luke take it? Did he really mean it, when he said kids would be fine? He would be there for her, that much was certain. They were getting married after all. But how would it affect their relationship? Were they ready for this? They didn’t even live together yet. She was busy with the Inn; he was running a business himself. They were about to enlarge the house. And then there was Rory. Thinking of her daughter always resulted in a stabbing pain in her chest. There were too many emotions clouding her judgment.

Lorelai felt panicked and took the next exit off the highway. Cold sweat ran down her back, her hands were clammy, her heart was beating as if she were running. Was she running? Lorelai shook her head. The town she entered was unknown to her. She circled for some minutes until she found a drugstore and pulled in the parking lot upfront. She was sitting there hands still on the steering wheel trying to calm herself. She wanted to enter the store confidently, not looking like a freaked-out teenager. She had done that two decades ago, and she always thought that if she ever got to do it again, it would be a happy occasion, with a husband by her side, full of hope and love. But this right there didn’t feel much different than it did all those years ago.

Pull yourself together, Lorelai, she told herself, grabbed the purse and got out of the car. The pregnancy tests were lined up right next to the condoms. She always thought that it was ironic. They were selling four different brands of different price ranges. Instead of reading the labels she just grabbed one of each and headed for the register. The cashier didn’t say a word and a minute later she was sitting back in the Jeep. Okay, task one was done, now on to number two: find a public toilet and take the damn test.

One hour later Lorelai was squatting in the bathroom of a local watering hole, trying to aim at the strip. After it was done, the instructions further stated to wait 5 minutes, so she shoved the test back in the package, threw it in her purse and left. Sitting again in her Jeep, she tried to compare her life with and without a baby. How it would complicate everything. She’d have to cut back from work, but that meant less income. Babies are expensive. The alternative was bringing the baby with her, but she wasn’t a maid anymore. A manager can’t strap a baby to her chest. She’d have to find a nanny and baby proof the house and do another million things and… and… _Luke_.

The realization hit her hard. She felt like she was driving in a dimly lit tunnel and suddenly reached the end, where the daylight is flooding your senses and blinding you with all its glory. That light was Luke. She wouldn’t be alone this time. She’d have help. She could work part-time, while Luke stayed at home. They could share, and split, and depend, and rely on each other. _She wasn’t alone_. Strange, she thought, it might just work.

When the alarm on her phone went off, she jumped and hit her head on the roof. “Jesus, Mary, Joseph and the camel!” she swore and rubbed her forehead. With shaking fingers, she fished the box out of her purse and dropped the test into her hand. There it was.

Time stood still. Lorelai was staring at the test, not moving, not breathing. Her heartbeat was drowning out the world around her. The result was as clear as day, she had seen it before. She finally drew in some air, leaned back in her car seat and closed her eyes. Tears started rolling down her cheeks and after a while of silently crying she started to chuckle, which turned into a hiccup. She must look like an insane woman from the outside, she thought and wiped her face. On to the last part of the plan: tell the father.

\---

Lorelai was driving back to Stars Hollow; the radio was cranked up. She didn’t realize how far she was driving this morning, but the way back seemed to take forever. She saw up ahead a group of people in yellow vests, cleaning the roadside. She recognized Rory and stopped the car. Talking to Rory was actually against her own rules but she needed her friend right now. Her life had changed so much since they last spoke, and she wanted Rory to be a part of it. She walked up to Rory, not knowing how to start a conversation. “Repaying your debt to society, I assume.”

“That's what this is,” Rory said distantly.

“System already hardened you?” she wanted it to sound like a joke but came out more sarcastic than she intended.

Rory picked up on her mother’s tone and snapped back, “So, I guess congratulations are in order.”

“So, how are things at the new digs?” Lorelai’s anger bubbled up to the surface.

“You guys set a date yet?” Rory quipped back.

“Grandma redecorate the pool house yet?” Lorelai could play the same game.

“Be sure to send me a picture.”

“Be sure to send me a change-of-address card. Grandma can print them out for you, with a little fleur-de-lis.”

Rory gritted her teeth, “I'm not supposed to be talking to outsiders.”

“Fine,” Lorelai was frustrated and turned to walk away.

“You and Luke getting engaged and not telling me about it. You hurt me,” Rory yelled after her.

“Back atcha! And by the way, I’m pregnant. There. You heard it from me first!” Lorelai shouted back, her eyes burning with tears. She turned around dramatically and walked back to her car, leaving a stunned Rory behind. This was not at all how she wanted this to go.

\---

**STARS HOLLOW – 28 th May**

Thankfully Sookie was at home and awake. Lorelai was in need of a friend who understood that she was in seven different emotional states at the same time. She also wasn’t ready to face Luke just yet. He would ask too many questions that she had no answers to. She needed open ears and a shoulder to cry on.

And that’s what they did. Sookie had served tea and freshly baked cookies. They sat in her living room on the sofa, Lorelai’s face red and puffy from all the crying. She had told her about Rory’s court day, the community service and that she moved all her stuff to her grandparents. She talked about Luke, how he gave her the ring, that he was planning the extension of the house, the hole in the wall, and that Rory visited him at the diner.

Sookie mainly just listened, gasped and sighed at different parts as Lorelai was crying angry tears, sad tears, happy tears, and disappointed tears.

It slowly turned dark outside and Sookie suggested to get some fresh air. Jackson, who had returned home at some point, retreated to the bedroom to give the women some space. He took over to watch the kids. Sookie and Lorelai wandered around town talking about the inn and life, when they stopped in front of a tall building with white columns and a large portal. They stood there for a moment, looking up at it.

“It's big!” Lorelai exclaimed.

“That's what she said,” Sookie giggled childishly.

“Good one,” Lorelai smirked, and nudged Sookie in the ribs.

“Hey, I'm still twelve.”

“I meant the house,” Lorelai rolled her eyes. “It's very big.”

“Very sweet of Luke to have that dream of his. You two living in this house,” Sookie added dreamfully.

“What do you think there are? Twelve rooms?” Lorelai guessed, saying it, as if it were a bad thing.

“At least!” Sookie called. “You could really go to town in this place. What do you do with so many rooms? Decorate each in a different style?”

Lorelai nodded and said absentmindedly, “And get a plant.”

“A plant?” Sookie looked at her sideways.

“Luke wants a plant,” Lorelai explained.

“Aw. He could’ve had a whole jungle in this place!” Sookie laughed, imagining Luke getting lost in his own indoor garden.

“Yeah - or he fills it with kids,” Lorelai sighed and Sookie gasped. She grabbed Lorelai’s wrist. “Did you two talk about having children?”

“Well, there’s something else I haven’t told you yet...” Lorelai grimaced and Sookie's eyes went wide. “Oh, my god! You are going to have children! That’s wonderful!” Sookie clasped her hands. “I actually had a dream of this the other night. That you had a kid that looked exactly like Luke, flannel and baseball hat and all. But then I could never tell who’s who, and it got _very_ confusing.”

“Sookie?” Lorelai tried to get her friend's attention back. “I’m pregnant.”

“WHAT?!” Sookie’s jaw dropped. “You had _all day_ to tell me and you waited until NOW?! OH! MY! GOD!” her voice became very high-pitched and she started jumping up and down. Then she suddenly stopped and looked at Lorelai with a serious face. “Wait, is _that_ why you proposed?”

“What? No. NO! I didn’t know back then and… oh Sookie… Can we do the jumping some more? I really want this to be happy!”

“Why are you not happy? Don’t you want to have a kid with Luke?” Sookie suddenly looked worried.

“Yes, I do. I just… I don’t know if it is the right time…” Lorelai tried to explain and stared at the floor.

“Oh, sweetie, it’s the perfect time! The inn is up and running, your life is settled, you are getting married… Did Luke say something?” Sookie patted Lorelai’s hand.

“No, I - haven’t told him yet.”

“You have to tell him! I’m sure he’ll be excited. Maybe not directly after telling him… but after the shock wears off and his gears start turning again, I’m sure he’ll love it. Deep down he’s a family guy and you know it.”

“Yes, you are probably right. Man, I could really use a cup of coffee about now.”

 They turned to leave when Lorelai looked back at the house “WOW!”

“What?” Sookie looked at her in irritation.

“Is it me or...” Lorelai gestured towards the house.

Sookie looked up at the house too, “Nope! I think it just got bigger.”

“That's what she said,” Lorelai grinned widely and it was Sookie's turn to roll her eyes, “Good grief.”

“What!? You can be twelve, but I can't be twelve?”

“No... You can be twelve.”

“Thank you.”

“And hey; congratulations!” Sookie threw her arms around Lorelai and they giggled and jumped up and down some more.


	4. Different Constructions

**JUNE 2005**

The first week of June had been quite eventful. Luke was busy finalizing plans with George, the architect, for the extension of the new rooms and they hired Tom as their contractor. Lorelai tried to give her inputs, especially when it came to the bathroom and closet space. They were all truly surprised when Taylor gave them green light on the whole project. Since they were not enlarging the ground plan of the house, nor making it higher than it currently was, they had all right to make their changes. Luke was prepared to have the argument of his life with Taylor, but they just shook hands, signed some papers, and went each their way. Tom had already his crew together and even agreed on letting TJ tag along, as long as he wouldn’t endanger his or anyone else’s life. They were all set up and ready to start the following week.

Before there were going to be men all over her place day in day out, Lorelai had to do one last thing. Her gynecologist’s office was a place she never truly felt comfortable at. Although she urged Rory to go once a year for a check-up, she went more like every two and a half years. It came to no surprise that the doctor greeted her with, “Miss Gilmore, it’s been a while!”

Dr. Carmen Santiago had a dry sense of humor and was generally a straightforward kind of person. Lorelai sure liked her, if they had met under different circumstances, and she wasn’t, well, her gynecologist, they might have been friends. They had met shortly after Rory was born and Lorelai needed medical assistance postpartum.

After they did a general health check, blood, and urine test, as well as a variety of other tests, Lorelai felt like a common lab rat and sat down opposite Santiago. “All right doc, what’s the verdict? How long I got?”

Santiago raised an eyebrow and smirked, “It all looks good. You are almost 4 weeks along. Baby should be due early to mid-February. I can give you a more precise date later on. Now we should talk about Elderly Multigravida and some risks that come along with that.”

“Elderly? Did you just say 'elderly'? Like walking cane and reading glasses?”

“It sounds worse than it is. Just refers to women over 35. The good news is, this is not your first time. There are several risk factors we have to keep an eye on and the chance of your child having Down Syndrome is about 1 in 250. We can test this in about 6/7 weeks. Apart from that, the pregnancy will be same old, same old. No alcohol, no raw fish or milk, careful with eggs, cheese, caffeine…”

“Uhu, okay, caffeine? As in coffee?” Lorelai looked alert.

“As in coffee, tea, coke, energy drinks… Here, take this brochure. It states exactly what to avoid and what to consume in moderation.”

“Great, so, no coffee, huh?” Lorelai said stunned.

“Here and there a cup won’t hurt but definitely not every day and since we are talking high-risk pregnancy here, I’d swear it off altogether.”

“Wow, you sure you don’t know a Luke Danes?”

“I’m sure. Okay, do you have any questions so far?” Santiago asked while turning around to grab a box full of pamphlets. Lorelai nodded and Santiago proceeded, “Let’s talk preparation courses.”

“Oh no, I’m not going to any of those classes, they are the worst. They either treat you A) like you are the baby, B) like you are having a life-threatening disease and there’s lots and lots of crying, or C) they tell you all the worst case scenarios they have ever witnessed, which they think makes them look cool, but actually just scare the crap out of everybody else.”

“Okay, no classes for you,” Santiago said knitting her brows. “What about the father?” she asked sincerely.

Lorelai couldn’t help but burst out laughing. “Oh god, you haven’t met Luke yet but…”, Lorelai wiped some tears away, while still shaking from laughter. “Uff... Maybe I need to drag him to one of those just to see him in a room full of pregnant ladies doing birth exercises.” While Lorelai kept on laughing, Santiago moved the stack of papers away and rolled her eyes. “Alright, got it. No pamphlets.”

\---

**HOME**

One hour later, Lorelai was back home, hopping into the shower to wash off the feel of a doctor’s office. When she felt like herself again, she rubbed herself dry and wrapped the towel around her head. She stepped outside and was met by five surprised looking men. Their dumbfounded expressions quickly turned into big grins. Lorelai stood stiff as a poker then turned on her heels without a word and slammed the bathroom door shut. “Fuck, fuck, fuck.”, she muttered and wrapped a second towel around her body. She opened the door just a gap to see if the air was clear, then jogged downstairs, grabbed her clothes and got dressed in Rory’s room.

Lorelai stepped out onto the porch, spotting Luke talking to Tom. “Hey you, what’s going on? Why are you all here?”

“Lorelai, hey, I didn’t know you are home. We are just prepping for Monday.”

“Oh okay, good. Hey, Luke?” Lorelai took his hand and moved a few feet away from Tom and some other guys. “Do you mind if I stayed with you during the renovations? To keep my privacy intact and not repeat the little incident we just had.”

Luke saw that Lorelai looked uncomfortable and narrowed his brows, “What incident?”

“Oh, nothing big. Some of the guys just saw me naked.” She tried to sound casual but failed miserably. “What?! How in hell did a couple of guys see you naked?” Luke asked enraged.

“Well, I was getting out of the shower, and Joe...” Lorelai started explaining but Luke cut her off. “Joe? Joe saw you naked?” he urged her, wanting to punch that bastard in the face.

“And Pete,” Lorelai continued, again Luke interrupted her. “Pete?!” he almost shrieked.

“Well Pete was with Joe coming up the stairs, and then Slim...”

“Slim saw you naked?!!”

“Well I could see him, so I assume he could see me. Billy had the best view; he was standing in the hallway and had a straight shot right down main street.” Lorelai gestured with one hand down her torso. “So four guys saw you naked?!” Luke rubbed his forehead.

“Well if you don't count Teddy, then yes!”

“What in the hell were those guys doing up there in the first place?”

“Sizing the situation?” Lorelai tried jokingly but Luke’s expression didn’t change. “I think TJ accidentally sent them up,” she shrugged.

Luke’s face turned red. “I'm gonna kill him.”

“No, Luke. Please, don’t. Listen, it was crazy to think I could live here during the renovations anyway. So, let me stay with you and the show's over. No one sees the goods but you. It could also be like a trial run for us living together. I know you’re not a fan of Paul Anka, but maybe you can make an exception and…”

“Go pack a bag, you are staying with me. Paul Anka can come as well,” Luke commanded. Lorelai gave him a thankful smile and a quick kiss, then disappeared inside. Norman came up behind Luke, patted him on the shoulder and gave him an approving nod. Luke gave him a disturbed look back.

\---

**DRAGONFLY INN**

“Hey, how did it go at the doctor’s?” Sookie asked as soon as Lorelai stepped foot into the kitchen, two days later. “Great!” Lorelai rolled her eyes. “Do you know how old I am?”

Sookie looked at her puzzled. “Is that a trick question? Of course, I know how old you are.”

Lorelai made a buzzer sound. “Eeeh! Wrong! I’m ancient, Sookie! I need to buy adult diapers because I just might pee myself.”

“What? What are you talking about?”

“I should stock up on bandages because I’m not gonna be a mommy, I’m gonna be a mummy.”

“Honey, sweetie, sit down, what happened?”

“I went there, sat down, and alarms went off, sirens were blaring, I swear someone ran around me waving a red flag. I am a high-risk pregnancy and the word ‘elderly’ has been used to describe me.”

“Ouch. I’m sorry. But everything’s good? Apart from that, you are fine?”

“Yes, it’s all good.” Sookie squealed and gave her friend a big hug. Lorelai walked to the coffee maker and grabbed a cup, looked at it and put it back. “Ugh, I’m even too old for coffee.”

“I can make you a cup of tea,” Sookie suggested instead.

“Apparently tea isn’t better. I’ll just have…” Lorelai looked around. “… water!”

“So have you told Luke yet?” Sookie asked carefully and Lorelai made a pained facial expression. “No.”

“Why not?! You have to tell him and while you’re at it, set a wedding date!”

“Sookie!”

“No, don’t Sookie me. I can’t keep it in much longer. I had Michel black out all of July for next year. This will give you enough time after birth to get ready for the wedding.”

“You did what? And how do you know when the baby’s due?” Lorelai retorted.

“I can count to nine, thank you. July 23rd is my pick, but I am flexible.”

Right at that moment, Michel entered the kitchen. “Michel, unblack it out!”, Lorelai called.

Michel looked from Lorelai to Sookie and pointed a finger at her. “I told you.”

Sookie slouched her shoulders. “You were right. You called it.”

Lorelai felt like missing half the conversation that took place. “Called what?”

“I told her that you were not getting married,” Michel said. “The woman can't commit to a purse, much less a man.”

“I am getting married!” Lorelai defended herself.

Sookie sighed, “I am so naive. I believed.”

“Live and learn,” Michel mocked.

“Hey! I am getting married! I am. We will set a date. And we will get married on that date. And I've had the same purse for almost a year, thank you very much.”

“Of course. My mistake. Now let me go cancel your wedding plans,” Michel took a step towards the door and then turned around dramatically. “Wait. Do you feel that?”

 Lorelai looked at Michel with slight annoyance. “Feel what?”

“An icy chill as if something sinister is approaching.”

“What?” Sookie looked spooked.

Michel started humming the witch's theme from ‘The Wizard Of Oz’.

“Gee, Michel, is Paris here?” Lorelai raised a brow.

“Maybe she was coming up the walk when I fled.” He started walking away.

“Where are you going?”

“In the opposite direction,” he stated and left through the kitchen door.

Sookie wasn’t pleased either. “Paris? Paris is here? Again?!” She looked after Michel and chuckled, “Oh! I get the humming now!” Then put on a serious face and turned to Lorelai. “What is she doing here?”

“I’m gonna deal with her. Don’t worry.” Lorelai rolled her eyes and left.

\---

**RESTAURANT**

After Tom had assured them that everything was discussed and running smoothly, TJ came back with a paper bag. Tom had sent him on a quest to buy a mystic hammer, which TJ, the trusty contractor he was, went to get. It took him all day, but he returned successfully and presented Tom with the hammer that looked like any other. Tom wanted to know if they had any plans for the ground floor, especially the kitchen, but Lorelai denied that, when TJ had the brilliant idea of turning Rory’s room into a pork smoker room. Luke managed to get rid of him and he and Lorelai left for their date night.

At the restaurant, Lorelai and Luke were taking their seats and a waiter handed out menus. “Can I get you something to drink?”

“I’ll have a beer and … wine?” Luke looked at Lorelai who was already checking the menu.

“Uh, no. Just tap water is fine, thanks.”

The waiter nodded and walked away. Lorelai hadn’t spoken on the way over and Luke was concerned. He knew TJ had upset her by invading Rory’s room, but he couldn’t shake the feeling that there was more to it. “You are awfully quiet tonight. Sure, everything’s alright? I know TJ’s an ass, but Tom has it under control. I promise.”

Lorelai didn’t look up from the menu, just mumbled, “Oh yeah, that’s fine, I am fine. Are you fine?”

Luke lowered his head and tried to look at her face. “I’m good,” he said slowly, narrowing his eyebrows.

“Good. Let’s talk about something else,” she said absentmindedly. Luke observed her closely for a while. She was staring at the menu, biting her lower lip. Luke took a deep breath and asked, “Something on your mind?”

She finally looked up at him. She looked uncomfortable, even a little scared, which made Luke especially uneasy. “Luke, I don't want to set a wedding date until things are right with Rory.”

So that was what’s been bothering her. Luke sighed of relief, “Yeah, sure. Okay. No problem. I understand.” He nodded to give his words more importance.

Lorelai felt like a big weight had been lifted off her shoulders. “Thank you.” She gave him a quick smile. If only that was all of it. She continued staring at the menu, chewing her lip.

Luke saw her reaction and was skeptical. “Anything else?”

Lorelai knew there was no backing down now, so she took a deep breath. “Do you remember when the Independence Inn was on fire two years ago?”

Luke raised his eyebrows in confusion. “Uh, sure, is that somehow related to… uhm why?”

“I was sleeping over at your place and we were talking, and I told you about a dream I had, remember that?”

“Yeah, I remember. We were married, and had, uh, twins, right?”

“Yes, and…”

The waiter was back with their drinks. He put them down and asked if they were ready to order. Lorelai waved apologetically and said they needed more time. The waiter left. Luke was staring at Lorelai, analyzing every move. He still tried to figure out a connection between what had happened, the wedding date and Lorelai’s dream. Lorelai continued, “You bought the Twickham house and talked about all the children and...”

“Oh!” Luke felt like someone turned on a lightbulb in his head. That’s what this is about. He had to smile.

Lorelai guessed by his reaction that he got, what she wanted to hint at and asked, “So?”

“I told you, I am down for it. I meant it. If this is what you want. We are on the right track. You and I, we are getting married and then we can have children. As many as you like. Or none if you change your mind.”

“Good. Great,” she laughed nervously. “But hey, why wait? We could start right now!”

“Right now? _Here?”_ Luke glanced around and smirked.

“No, that’s not what I meant,” Lorelai frowned. “We just don’t have to wait until _after_ getting married to start a family.”

“Oh… I don’t understand… You want to wait with wedding plans but go ahead and … make babies?”

“Well… I am not getting any younger. The clock is ticking, mister.” Lorelai tapped her left wrist, as if she were wearing a watch. “And you don’t _have to_ be married to reproduce. I am living proof.”

“I don’t… What..? Why the rush?” Luke was visibly confused.

“Remember the ticking time bomb here!” Lorelai pointed with her thumbs at herself and made annoying ticking noises.

Luke’s expression went from confusion to irritation. “Lorelai, what’s going on?”

She took a final deep breath. “I’m pregnant.”

Luke’s jaw dropped and his eyes went wide. Right then the waiter came back over and asked cheerfully, “So folks, found anything?”

Lorelai awkwardly smiled at the waiter. “Sorry, we still need more time. The waiter shrugged and left. Lorelai looked at Luke waiting for a reaction. Any reaction. “Luke?  _Luke?_  Please, say something.”

Luke swallowed, “Are you - sure?”

“Yes.”

“How?”

“Well, Luke, when a man and a woman…”

“Lorelai!” Luke yelled exasperated.

“The night of the magazine party in Manhattan,” Lorelai winced and looked at Luke almost scared of his next words.

“Oh,” Luke remembered and nodded, then had a sudden realization. “Oh god. Is it twins?!”

“What? No. It’s one… just the one. Why?”

“You mentioned the dream… and I thought… so you don’t know yet?

“Know what?” Lorelai tried to follow Luke’s train of thoughts.

“What we are having. Boy or girl?”

“No, not yet. It is too early for that. Luke, I know this is shocking and I don’t want to put you under pressure. I know it is soon for us but here it is. I am pregnant - again. God, I suck at family planning.” Lorelai buried her face in her hands and sighed. Luke stood up and pulled Lorelai towards him. He wrapped his arms around her and held her close. Lorelai relaxed a little and put her arms around his middle. “I love you so much,” Luke whispered into her ear and kissed her temples.

“So you’re not mad? You’re… happy?”

“Why would I be mad?” Luke chuckled.

“Because you don’t like children. They freak you out. Because it’s too soon. Because we’re not married.”

“I don’t dislike children. I like Rory.” Lorelai gave him a questionable look. “Okay. I don’t like _other_ people’s children. But this…” He softly placed a hand on Lorelai’s stomach. “This is you and me. And if you want to be married before, we could elope.”

“You want to elope?”

“No. – I mean… I’m just thinking out loud here. I want you to be happy. Plus, we got nine months to figure this out, right?”

“Eight actually…”

“Eight,” he repeated, lifted her chin and kissed her. Lorelai kissed him back, needing him just a bit more. They stayed entwined until both had to smile. “We should eat. Celebrate,” Luke said and pressed one last kiss on her lips.

\---

**LUKE’S APARTMENT**

Later that night, Lorelai was sitting in Luke’s bed, switching through TV channels. Luke pulled a T-shirt over his head and asked, “So, who already knows?”

“What?” Lorelai asked, still looking at the TV.

“I assume Sookie knows. Did you tell anybody else?”

“Oh,” she turned to face Luke. “Yeah, Sookie knows. I hope that’s okay. I’m sorry I told her before you.”

Luke made a dismissive gesture. “That’s okay.”

“And Rory knows,” Lorelai added silently.

“Rory knows? You talked to Rory??” Luke sounded happy and hopeful.

“Not really. We had a confrontation and I kinda threw it in her face.” Lorelai didn’t look pleased.

“I’m sorry. But don’t worry, she’ll come around. It’s gonna be fine.” Luke finished dressing in his pajamas and gave Lorelai a reassuring nod.

Lorelai nodded. “How are you?” light worry swinging in her voice.

“I’m good. Really. I just hate that you were afraid to tell me,” Luke said, getting into bed next to her.

“I wasn’t afraid. I was unsure, yes. Concerned, sure. But not afraid.”

“Good.” Luke pulled her closer to his chest to cuddle. “So, should we tell the town?”

Lorelai pushed herself off Luke’s chest. “You? You wanna make a town announcement?!”

Luke grinned and shrugged. “They are gonna know eventually. I just rather they hear it from us, than East Side Tilly.” He rolled his eyes.

“Okay,” Lorelai beamed. “We tell them, together. Next town meeting?”

Luke slightly regretted, suggesting it. “Sure,” he agreed but grimaced anyway.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading!
> 
> What do you think they are having? Boy or girl?


	5. Wilderness

**LUKE’S DINER – MID-JULY**

“Hey, do you have apples?” Lorelai sat down at the counter, opposite Luke, who was writing something on his notepad. Luke just glanced up quickly but kept on writing. “Sorry, all out of apple pie.”

“Skip the pie, I am here for the real deal. You must have some Golden Delicious? McIntosh? A big ol’ Granny Smith?”

Luke put his pencil down and looked at her in surprise. “What do you want an apple for? Throw it at Kirk?” He pointed with his thumb at Kirk, who was sitting next to the cash register. Upon hearing his name, Kirk looked at Luke offendedly.

“Nah, I thought I gave archery a try and shoot the apple off your head. So, do you have any here or not?”

“Yeah, I got some in the back,” he responded but didn’t move.

“Dooo I have to get it myself?” Lorelai got up and walked towards the storage room.

“I got it.” Luke disappeared quickly and came back holding out a shiny yellow apple to her. Lorelai took it and started rubbing the apple with her sleeve, then proceeded to bite in it when she notices Luke was standing opposite her with his arms crossed, staring at her.

“What? You really gonna watch me eat it?”

“Yeah, this might never happen again. I should get my camera or something.”

“If I’m gonna ask for a salad next, are you gonna faint?” Lorelai teased.

“If you really eat it, I just might.”

“Hand me a menu!” Lorelai demanded accepting the challenge and sat back down, munching on her apple.

Luke frowned. “Are you sick?”

“No. Pregnant. With your child. It makes me eat all healthy,” Lorelai grimaced.

“Well done, kid,” Luke grinned proudly, and Lorelai rolled her eyes at him.

“I’m gonna make you the best salad you’ve ever had.” He disappeared in the kitchen.

When he came back with two big plates of salad, Lorelai was folding some papers. He sat down next to her at the counter and started eating. Lorelai looked at him in surprise. “You are eating with me?”

Luke shrugged. “It’s after lunch hours, too early for people to come by for coffee. There are only Kirk and the crossword-solving lady here and I haven’t eaten yet. What are those?” He nodded at the pile of papers that Lorelai was pushing away to get more room.

“Flyers for Miss Patty's big annual show on Thursday. All her kids in all her classes get to perform. It's be there or be square. Best show in town. I’m folding some to display at the Inn.” Lorelai turned to her salad and started picking it apart.

“Thursday, huh? That's a good night. I can have Caesar close for me.”

“Why? You wanna go to the recital? You are aware that it's a night of kids dancing, singing, twirling batons. You'll hate it,” Lorelai argued.

“No, I won't. It will be fun. I mean, you'd probably sit there and mock most of it. I can mock stuff.”

“Oh, you're a great mocker but you don’t have to go for me. You have been sacrificing too much of yourself these past few months. You go with me to my movies; you tag along when I go shopping. And that dinner at Sookie and Jackson's...how you kept from killing us all, I'll never know.”

“I haven't been complaining about any of this,” Luke said provoked.

“I know, and that has filled me with no end of guilt. You've been a saint, but you've got to do your Luke stuff, too. When was the last time you went camping or fishing?”

“I don’t know…” He shrugged. “I'd go if I felt like it.”

“Well, then go Thursday while I'm at the recital. I'll go with Sookie. It'll be fun with her.”

Luke narrowed his eyes. “Why are you trying to get rid of me?”

“What? No! Luke, I’m not trying to get rid of you,” Lorelai squealed in despair.

“Well, it sounds like you are banishing me to the woods.” Luke looked hurt and stared at his plate. Lorelai touched his arm gently to make him look at her and said, “No, Luke. I just want you to do _your_ things. The things _you_ like.” She tried to give her words emphasis.

“I do. I like doing things with you. Surprised I have to tell you that.”

“You don't have to tell me that.”

“I like going shopping with you, I like having dinner with Sookie and Jackson. I like everything we do because you're there, and I like hanging with you.”

“I know that. I really wasn't getting rid of you. You and I can hang whenever, wherever.”

“Good. Then let’s go to the recital on Thursday,” Luke said, a smile tugging at the corner of his mouth. Lorelai smiled back and nodded.

 “And maybe we can go camping together sometime?” Luke had his head lowered but made eye contact and smirked slightly.

“Walked right into that, didn’t I?” Lorelai grimaced.

“Come on. Just one night. We might not have a chance to go away for some time when this one’s here.” He pointed at her belly. “And if you don’t like it, we come straight back home.” Luke begged, which was something he hardly ever did, and Lorelai knew she couldn’t fend him off now. “Lu-uke.” She tried using her puppy eyes.

Luke crossed his arms provocatively. “How do you even know you wouldn’t like it? Have you ever been camping?”

“As a matter of fact, I have,” Lorelai said snootily.

“Really?” Luke wasn’t convinced.

“Yes. For a whole week. My middle school went on a field trip. We didn’t have to bring our own tents though. We slept in those permanently installed tipis. Four of us in one. Apart from all the hiking and collecting leaves it was actually a pretty cool week. We snuck out every night to a hostel nearby. An all-boys school was bunking there,” she grinned.

Luke had to laugh out loud. It was such a typical Lorelai story. “So you had a good time?”

“Yeah, I guess,” she nodded.

“Then why don’t you like camping?” Luke asked inquisitively.

Lorelai looked down at her plate and blushed a little. “Because I need a real toilet, Luke.”

He burst out laughing even harder than before. “I promise, I’ll make you as comfortable as I can. Two days, one night. What do you say?” Lorelai growled. She felt like she owed him and agreed to his crazy plan. Luke smiled from ear to ear. “Good. Now eat your salad.”

\---

**MISS PATTY’S – A THURSDAY IN JULY**

The dance studio had been packed and Miss Patty was very pleased with the outcome. After the show people were standing in and around the dance studio, chatting and drinking punch. Miss Patty had organized some snacks and drinks for the guests and most kids were running around still in costumes. She made the rounds through the crowd, talking to all the parents, collecting compliments. Luke and Lorelai stood outside the studio on the sidewalk and Luke was brushing down his shirt to get rid of the glitter that some kids had thrown during their musical routine. “This should be forbidden! The performers should remain on stage while performing, that’s why there is a stage in the first place!” he ranted and fished some confetti out of Lorelai’s hair. She wasn’t a fan of the glitter either but Luke getting worked up over it made her laugh. Miss Patty spotted them and rushed over. “Hey you two, nice of you to come!” she exclaimed and patted both of them on their backs.

“Great show Patty! You teach them too well, the baton girls didn’t drop’em once,” Lorelai said impressed.

“Aren’t they darling?! Oh, I loved it. Which act did you like the most, Luke?” she asked, and Luke tried to think of an honest answer. “Well, uh, I’ll never be able to unsee what Kirk did…” he tried and adjusted his cap, still processing the mental images of Kirk as a fetus.

Patty clasped her hands and almost teared up a little. “Wasn’t he wonderful? Such a talent. Maybe one day LJ is going to be up on that stage. Oh, I can’t wait!”

Luke and Lorelai exchanged confused looks and Lorelai asked, “Who’s LJ?”

“Your baby of course. We thought what to name him or her for some time now. Saying ‘it’ just doesn’t feel right, honey, and repeating ‘him or her’ gets old soon. So we came up with LJ,” Patty explained proudly. Lorelai’s mouth opened but she didn’t know how to respond to that. She looked from Patty to Luke to Patty again. “Oh wow,” she finally muttered and shook Luke’s arm. “They named our baby!”

“I knew telling the town was a mistake,” Luke grumbled. “What does it even stand for? No wait why am I asking?” he gave Patty an annoyed look.

“Lorelai or Luke Junior, of course,” Patty said as if it were obvious, then spotted someone else and excused herself with a ‘see ya’ and hurried away.

“This is your fault,” Lorelai looked accusingly at Luke and they started walking towards Luke’s diner.

“How is this my fault?”

“You wanted to tell the town. We should have waited longer.”

“Yes, we could have… but how would you’ve explained that you gave up co…”

“Don’t say the c-word!” Lorelai interrupted loudly and wagged her finger at Luke. Giving up on her morning routine was much harder than she anticipated. She tried decaf for a week, but it just wasn’t the same. Luke had made her all kinds of fruit juices, but she wasn’t a fan. The daily apple she ate were enough healthy food for her.

They reached the diner and Luke held the door open, but Lorelai turned to the right to walk past it. Luke stood for a second perplexed, wondering if she were upset over the coffee comment or Miss Patty, then closed the door and hurried to catch up with her. “Where are you going?” he asked, trying to read her face.

Lorelai stopped and looked around. She had walked without thinking and was surprised that they stood in front of Doose’s. “Oh,” she said surprised. “I wanted to go home, pick up the mail, check the voicemail… I also left Paul Anka there earlier,” she explained and started walking again. Luke shoved his hands in the jeans pockets and followed her. “You know, that you can sleep at your place if you want. You don’t have to stay at the apartment every night. You are not my prisoner.”

Lorelai looked at him and wondered why on earth he would say that. They had a shaky start, not going to lie, mostly because of their different sleeping hours, but after a while Lorelai started going to bed early and taking on more morning shifts at the Inn, since she usually was exhausted in the evenings without caffeine in her system. It all worked out pretty well she thought. “Luke, come on, I know that. I was simply going to get some stuff and Paul Anka.”

Luke eyed her carefully. He wasn’t sure if she was telling the truth and narrowed his eyes. “So, I’ll see you later?”

“Yes, if not I’ll give you a call,” she promised, and they kissed briefly.

\---

The lawn in front of the house was full of construction material, machines and a truck from Tom was parked there as well. She wondered if someone was still at the house. When she pushed the door open, Paul Anka came to greet her. Lorelai noticed that the sofa and chairs in the living room had been moved to the side and were covered with a large white sheet. Her bed was leaning upright against the living room wall and all the boxes filled with her bedroom stuff were neatly stacked in front of it. They had laid down plastic on the floor and up the stairs. It didn’t look very inhabitable and Lorelai wandered to the kitchen. Apart from the big pile of mail on the kitchen table that Babette had put there, the kitchen looked as always. She started to organize the letters and magazines into piles and glanced at Rory’s room several times. She exhaled loudly and went to check the voicemail but there weren’t any messages. Lorelai went back to the kitchen and stopped in front of Rory’s room. The anger and disappointment that she had initially felt were almost gone. She missed her daughter too much and wished she came back. It all happened almost two months ago and so much had already changed. Lorelai finally opened the door and stepped inside. Half of her wardrobe was scattered on Rory’s bed and all her shoes were lying around on the floor. Apart from that the room was empty and her eyes filled with tears. She closed the door and got a water out of the fridge. “Come on Paul Anka,” she said, grabbed the stack of bills from the kitchen table, and left the house. Luke surely would cheer her up, and if not, at least he had pie.

\---

**SOMEWHERE ALONG THE CONNECTICUT RIVER – LATE JULY**

“Ask me again,” Luke said and turned around to Lorelai. They were on a hiking path going uphill and Lorelai was stumbling along behind Luke. It was a hot day and the sun was almost at its peak. Thankfully most of the way was through a forest and they could walk in the cool shadow. Lorelai stopped to catch her breath and looked at Luke who was standing few feet ahead of her. “Come on, you’ve been nagging me for the last half hour. Might as well wanna ask me now.”

Lorelai realized what he was getting at and leapt for joy. “Oh! Oh! Are we there yet?!” she smiled. Luke shook his head but had to grin. “Yes, just about. Few more steps.”

The path made a slight turn to the right, where a clearing opened up to a small plateau. The view over the Connecticut river was breathtaking. The forest along the river spread as far as the eye can see. Lorelai took in the view and stretched her back. “I can’t believe you made me climb up here,” she groaned and looked at Luke, who was unpacking the lunch he carried in his backpack. “You don’t like it up here?” he asked with concern. He wanted her to enjoy this trip, because if it went by successfully, they might do it again.

“I do. It’s beautiful, Lorelai nodded, “But we’ll have to walk all the way back. It took us forever to get here.”

Luke chuckled. They had left his truck on a meadow next to the river, where Luke wanted to set up the tent. He knew the spot well from fishing and on the weekends many campers went there. Since it was the middle of a week, they hadn’t seen anyone around. Luke proposed a walk to show Lorelai the great views from a hill nearby. It took them less than an hour to reach the place he had in mind to eat lunch. He didn’t want to overdo it since Lorelai was two and a half months pregnant. He handed her a sandwich and stood next to her to enjoy the view, although it wasn’t necessarily the same as Lorelai’s.  Luke’s eyes wandered up and down her body. “Might it help if I say that you look really good in that outfit?”

Lorelai moved her gaze from the horizon to her own appearance. She had gotten new brown hiking boots with cute red and yellow spotted shoelaces. She also wore new beige cargo shorts and a light blue V-neck t-shirt. “It might,” she grinned, and Luke gave her a kiss.

“Where did we leave the car?” she asked and tried to spot the meadow from above. Luke pointed at a place to their right. “Down there. We can follow the path we came up here a bit further and see the castle and then the route will take us back to where we started. That would take about another hour of walking. Or we head back the way we came, and we are at the campground in thirty minutes. Your choice,” he said and waited for her to make a decision. Lorelai knew how eager he was to show her around. He was smiling non-stop since they left Stars Hollow this morning and she wanted to hold on to his happiness as long as possible. So she agreed to visit the castle.

\---

Lorelai regretted giving in to Luke’s outdoorsy spirit. They arrived at the meadow two hours later and her feet ached like she had walked through burning glass shards. Or at least that’s how she explained the pain to Luke. After closer inspection her feet were swollen and reddened in some parts and she had three blisters. Luke had advised her to break the new boots in, which she naturally did not and now payed the price. Luke tried his best to not say ‘I told you so’ and take care of his fiancée’s tortured feet.

He got out two camping chairs and built up the tent himself, not that Lorelai would have known how to help anyway. She sat and watched him erect the tent, which was much bigger and higher than she thought. An adult person could almost stand in it. What impressed her the most was the self-inflatable mattress Luke had brought. It was big enough for two people to comfortable lie next to each other. Luke spread his old army green sleeping bag on it and got a second one out of the car. He opened the cover it was stored in and Lorelai’s eyes went wide. The sleeping bag he was laying down was light blue on the inside and navy blue on the outside. She had thought Luke had two of the same kind but the blue one was definitely newer and girlier than his faded military one.

“Lu-uke, did you buy me a sleeping bag?”

“Yup,” he said and proceeded to unload their bags from the truck.

“You didn’t have to. I’m sure I could have borrowed one from someone.”

“From who? You don’t know anybody who goes camping.”

That was true, apart from Luke there was no one coming to mind.

“I can pay you back,” she offered but he waved her off. “I proposed this trip, so I pay for it.”

Lorelai was nibbling on some honey roasted nuts. Luke was firmly against bringing junk food to the forest and although she could convince him that smores were a must they left everything else chocolaty or sugary in the store. Luke gave her the pack of nuts, which she had never tried before. She usually wasn’t a fan of nuts when they weren’t wrapped in chocolate or hidden inside ice cream, but these ones were sweet and salty at the same time, and really really good.

Luke had finished setting up everything to his liking and disappeared inside the tent to change. He emerged in a red t-shirt and black board shorts. He walked barefoot over to the truck and grabbed the fishing gear. Lorelai’s gaze followed him, and she had to smile. It was rare that Luke wore anything else than jeans and flannel shirts. She was already surprised that he had worn brown cargo shorts to the hike, obviously in combination with a plaid shirt and his black boots, but a change nonetheless. She had seen him in swim wear at the lake in Stars Hollow before, but it wasn’t the same as seeing Luke look all summery here. It was ‘her Luke’ and she enjoyed that immensely.

Luke had laid down the fishing rods at the edge and stepped into the water to fill a bucket then looked up and their eyes met. “You wanna go for a swim? Water’s pretty warm.”

Lorelai jumped up from her camping chair and disappeared in the tent herself. When she came back out, Luke had taken off his shirt and tossed it onto one of the chairs. He stood in the river until his knees and was splashing some water up his arms to acclimate himself. Lorelai had to swallow. His arms had always been strong and toned but she noticed that his chest had more definition than some time ago. He had a flatter stomach and some abs were showing. “You look hot,” Lorelai commented, and Luke looked up in surprise. “Uh, thanks,” he stuttered and turned slightly red. “So do you,” he added and extended one hand towards her. She held onto it and stepped carefully into the water as the stones were slippery. The blisters burnt slightly, and she winced. When she stood in front of him, she couldn’t help but trace his biceps and brush her fingers over his chest. “Have you been working out?” she asked looking closely at the man in front of her.

“I always work out,” he replied dryly. “Yeah, I know but you are clearly doing more than usual, or did you figure out how to grow muscles in your sleep?” Luke lead her a few steps deeper into the water and shrugged. “I just added some consistency to my routine over the last couple months.”

“Can I ask why? Not that I’m complaining - it’s just really not fair. I’m getting fat over here while you look like this!” Luke’s upper body was still out of water and Lorelai gestured him up and down. Luke chortled and looked at her, “I think pregnancy looks great on you plus I doubt you’ll gain any extra weight. You’ve been eating healthier than ever.”

“Yeah well, I’m just glad you’re not parading around town like that otherwise I’m going to have to wait in line at the diner to get some coffee.”

Luke chuckled and gave her a kiss. “I’m all yours.”

“Good,” she kissed him back. “So is there a reason you’re fighting Matthew McConaughey for the award as sexiest man alive?” Luke took her face in his hands and looked at her with a serious expression. He sighed and said, “I’m getting old.” Lorelai’s jaw dropped. Not what she was expecting at all. “You’re kidding?”

Luke dropped his hands. “No. - I’m nearing forty. I’m gonna be a father. I thought it might be a good idea to gain some fitness. I want to give my kid the best I have to offer.”

Lorelai stared at him implausibly. “Luke, that’s very honorable of you but trust me you’re not old.” Luke looked into the distance. “I’m also not young,” he stated. “I’m not saying this like it’s a bad thing. It is what it is. I just want to be prepared. Do my best.”

“You’re one heck of a man, Luke Danes.” Lorelai placed her hands on his chest and leaned in to kiss but gave his chest a strong push instead and Luke fell backwards. He grabbed on to the nearest thing which were Lorelai’s wrists and dragged her down with him. They struggled to their feet and Lorelai was laughing at Luke’s shocked face. “That’s how you wanna play?” he asked indignant and swept Lorelai off her feet and tossed her further into the river before she could protest. Lorelai came back up for air and wanted to say how unfair that was, but Luke was nowhere to be seen.

Where she landed the river was already deep and she couldn’t touch or even see the ground anymore. Suddenly something grabbed onto her ankle and dragged her down. Lorelai shrieked and went under. Luke and Lorelai resurfaced, Lorelai coughing, while Luke grinned mischievously. “You are having too much fun,” she gnarled and splashed Luke in the face but had to giggle soon enough. Luke tried to get a hold of her again, but she fought him off until she nearly drowned because she was laughing too hard. They swam back to shore and got out.

Wrapped in towels they sat side by side in their camping chairs and drank sodas. The sun started to get low and dipped the river into a golden glow. Lorelai looked around and felt more peaceful than she had in a long time. “Pretty,” she said and smiled to herself. Luke reached over to hold her hand. “Are you having a good time?” he asked shyly and Lorelai nodded. “A very good time.”

“Good.” Luke got up and pulled Lorelai to her feet. “Then let’s get fishing,” he said excitedly, and Lorelai groaned. “Do we really have to? You surely don’t want to make me a murderer.” Luke laughed. “If you want dinner we have to.”

“What if we don’t catch anything,” she argued.

“Then I’ve got a back-up dinner.”

“Why can’t we just eat the back-up dinner directly?” Lorelai pleaded.

“Because I want to see if you still know how to fish.” Luke was already busy preparing the rods.

“We don’t have to fish to figure out that I can’t fish. I’ve never done any fishing.”

Luke stopped prepping the hooks and looked at Lorelai in astonishment. “What do you mean? Of course you have. I thought you how to fish two years ago. You even kept the one you caught in your bathtub and I had to get rid of it.”

“Oh, yes you did,” Lorelai remembered his baffled look when he stood in her bathroom, eyeing her catch. “That was very nice of you but such a long time ago, I don’t remember any of it.”

“I show you. Come here,” Luke handed her a fishing rod and placed her fingers the correct way then stepped behind her. “You remember how to get it in the water?” Lorelai swung the rod and released the line. The hook landed far in the water and Lorelai looked pleased. “Look at that! Nicely done,” he complimented her and took the second rod to do the same. “I’ve had a good teacher,” Lorelai winked at him. Luke swung his pole and his hook landed several feet further. “Show off,” she laughed, and they sat back down on the camping chairs.

They sat in silence until Luke cleared his throat and looked at Lorelai. “Whatever happened to that guy? The one you went fishing with.” Lorelai looked bewildered. “What do you mean?”

“Uhm, I just remember that you went to New York with him, Jackson and Sookie, but then he was never mentioned again. What happened?”

“Oh - yeah,” she said and thought back to those days that felt like a million years ago. She was in deep thought when she noticed that Luke was looking at her expectantly. “Oh, you really want to talk about this?” she asked, and Luke gave a small nod. “Uhm, okay, we, uh, had been on several dates when I… uh… sort of run into Max at Chilton and we… kissed, and that made me realize that I had to focus on myself and not date for a while, which is what I told Alex and we went separate ways,” Lorelai explained uncomfortably.

Luke’s eyes went wide when she mentioned Max’s name and his eyebrows shot up even higher when she mentioned the kiss. “Wow! How did I not know about this?!”, he finally asked.

“Well, you were dating Nicole, you had your own things... and Jess... you didn’t have to keep up with my personal life,” Lorelai tried to shrug it off but Luke had more questions: “Did anything else happen between you and uh... Max?”

“No!” she said vehemently, knowing that Max was most likely a sore point for Luke. “We met at Chilton couple times more, but it was over.”

Luke nodded but stared out onto the water and was quiet. Lorelai started thinking about the past and her and Luke’s relationship, and decided it was her turn to ask a question. “Hey Luke, why did you marry Nicole?”

Luke brought his gaze back to her and clenched his jaw. “Uhm... I don’t know. I think I was tired of being alone and I thought better have someone than no one.” He looked down at his hands holding onto the fishing rod and said, “I know, pretty messed up. Especially when you have feelings for someone else.” He tilted his head to glance at Lorelai.

She held his gaze and asked further, “Why didn’t you ask me out then?”

Luke exhaled slowly and tried to think of all the excuses he had made over the years in order to not ask her out. “I guess I thought you didn’t like me that way. We were friends, I liked the way we were. Rachel pointed it out to me though, but I thought she was reading too much into it.”

“Rachel?” Lorelai’s jaw dropped. “Rachel was way before Nicole. How long exactly were you pining for me?”

“Ah geez, I was not pining for you! We’ve had this discussion before.”

“Yes, but not in detail.” Lorelai had liked Rachel. Maybe not as a girlfriend to Luke but as a general friend. Then another thought crossed her mind. “Tell me that’s not why she left?!”

Luke didn’t answer but started shifting uncomfortably in his chair and stared ahead.

“Luke! That was almost five years ago!”

“So what? It’s not like you were available!” Luke’s frustration grew by the second. He didn’t want to discuss past relationships with Lorelai, much less being called out on his behavior.

“What’s that supposed to mean? Yeah, I didn’t live like a monk, but I also wasn’t married all these years.” Lorelai barked back at him, feeling offended. What was Luke thinking? It’s not like she was jumping from guy to guy and Luke very well knew that.

“Pff, because you were still hung up on Christopher,” Luke spat angrily.

Lorelai shook her head at Luke, rage bubbling up inside her. “Low blow, Luke. Now _that_ discussion we had before. You can’t blame _everything_ on him, you know!”

“I’m not blaming him, except for being a moron.” Luke hated Christopher with a passion and never understood why Lorelai was so forgiving towards him.

“Then leave him out of this,” Lorelai pleaded, trying to reason with Luke.

“I can’t believe you’re still defending him!” Luke howled and got up from his camping chair to face away from Lorelai. She looked up at him, trying to wrap her mind around what was happening here. “That’s not what I’m doing. _You_ brought him up,” she tried to argue but Luke shot around, glaring. “Oh, so I can’t talk about your exes, but you can talk about mine?!”

“We can talk about everything, you know that, but you aren’t talking, you are shouting. All I wanted to know is why you didn’t ask me out sooner, since you clearly had an interest.” Now it was her turn to dramatically rise from her chair. She stood inches from him and stared him down. “Sorry that your feelings for me bother you so much!”

“What do you expect, Lorelai?! I have no excuse, no good reason, except that I’m a coward. Is that what you want to hear!? Because I admit it!” Luke yelled at her face and then took a step back. “I am terrified of falling in love, the chances of getting hurt are too damn high! My parents were in love and when my mom died, it broke my dad, it broke our family. It scares the hell out of me. It’s easier to stay away.” Luke slammed the fishing rod between them on the floor and started gesturing wildly. “Don’t you think I kick myself for not realizing what I was missing!? And when I finally had everything I dreamt of, it felt too good to be true. Instead of facing your parents or Christopher, I walked away and took the easy way out because that’s what a fucking coward does!” Luke sat down violently and hid his face in his hand. He was breathing heavily.

Lorelai’s pole dropped to the ground and her head was spinning. She sank to her knees next to him and caressed his arm. “Luke, you’re not a coward,” she said softly. “But you have to tell me things. We can’t keep having the same fights. We are not moving forward.”

“This is stupid! I’m stupid. Why am I deliberately trying to ruin this?”

“I don’t know. Probably because we are both scared.”

Luke lifted his head and locked eyes with Lorelai. “Now _that’s_ stupid. We have been through so much and I trust you completely. I didn’t mean to shout at you. Forgive me?”

Lorelai took his hand into hers, fingers intertwined. “Forgiven. Now let’s get that back-up dinner out,” she laughed and pulled Luke up.

Luke got a fire started while Lorelai was instructed to prepare the skewers with equal parts of meat and vegetable. Half an hour later they were roasting nicely over the open flame. Luke had also prepared fresh coleslaw, corn on the cob, and potatoes with sour cream. The food was absolutely delicious, and Lorelai didn’t hold back on her praise, but the conversation didn’t go past that. They sat next to each other staring in the fire or at the horizon. They had finished eating and Lorelai couldn’t take the awkward silence anymore.

“Okay, I have an idea,” she said and got up to grab the marshmallow bag, chocolates and cookies from their food box. “We are going to make smores and ask each other all the questions we have been too uncomfortable to ask in the past. Now is the time to address everything we have been avoiding. We are not leaving this campsite until we have talked it out. The rules are simple: respect, honesty and no judging. After we are done with a topic we get a smore as a reward. Oh, and if the question you’re asking can go both ways, you must answer as well. Fair’s fair. You in?”

Luke worked his jaw for a moment then nodded. “Okay. You start.”

Lorelai grinned playfully and rubbed her hands in anticipation. “With how many women have you had sex?”

“That’s your first question!?” Luke groaned, “I’m not gonna answer that!”

“Hey! You just agreed to the terms and conditions. No take backs. I’ll tell you my number.”

“You’re just gonna make fun of me. No matter if I say one hundred or one.”

“Yeah, well if you say one hundred, I am going to be too shocked to say anything at all and if you say one then, well, I’d have _a lot_ _of questions_ , since I know more than one of your exes.”

“Fine, I’ll tell you,” he said already regretting the game. “Six.”

“Huh,” Lorelai nodded. “Alright. Okay, you, sir, are my lucky number seven.”

“Really? Not more?” Luke looked surprised.

“No why? I had a baby at sixteen. I didn’t have more sex until, well you know until when.”

Luke swallowed hard and his eyes went wide. “Max?”

Lorelai nodded and opened the marshmallows. “We need some kind of sticks…”

Luke took two skewers out of the box next to him and handed one over. They started toasting the marshmallows, and Lorelai reminded Luke that it was his turn to ask.

“I wondered if you ever thought of me… you know… before the kiss, did you have… feelings for me?”

Lorelai had to chuckle at his shyness but was glad he went along with the game. “Yes, Luke I liked you.”

“You did? When? For how long?”

Lorelai looked up at the stars above and stretched her neck from side to side before she spoke. “I guess it had always been there, in the back of my head. The first time I really knew for sure was when you told me you had moved in with Nicole. I remember thinking; damn, my best friend doesn’t even care enough about me to tell me he moved away. And that really hurt – because it felt like I lost you. You asked me why I cared so much in the church and I knew then that I cared about you way more than just a friend.”

Luke was stunned. “Why didn’t you tell me?”

“You were _married_ , Luke.”

“So you dated that Jason guy instead?”

“Oh come on! Yes, I dated Jason, he was a nice distraction, my parents hated it. It ended in a disaster… Now eat your smore.”

“Your parents also hate me…” Luke enclosed quietly.

“They don’t hate you. They disapprove of you, but they don’t hate you. That’s a big difference,” Lorelai pointed out and took a deep breath before she asked her next question. “Luke, will you ever believe me when I say that I am over Chris?”

Luke gritted his teeth but slowly nodded. “But I think I'm never going to be okay with him being in your life.”

“I'm always going to have Christopher in my life. He is Rory's father. I can't change that. All I can do is promise you, to never hide anything from you. You have to trust me on this.”

Luke nodded once more. “No secrets,” he said, and Lorelai agreed. They both ate another smore and Lorelai asked, “Do you actually like smores or you just eat them because I said that’s the rule?”

Luke chuckled, “It’s not your turn to ask questions, but yes I do like smores.” Lorelai bit her lip, to hide a smile. Who would have thought that Luke Danes likes smores?

“Why didn’t you marry Max?” Luke asked popping a marshmallow in his mouth.

Lorelai shrugged lightly. “Didn’t love him.”

“Never?” Luke dug deeper.

“I wanted to. But it didn’t feel right. I’ve only ever said ‘I love you’ to three people and they are all related to me. Also not sure if I really want to count my parents…”

“Same,” Luke said. “My parents and Liz. Unconditionally.”

“And you,” Lorelai added and smiled lovingly at Luke.

“And you,” Luke gave back and caressed her cheek.

“And once this one’s here, you’re gonna have your socks blown off,” Lorelai said and placed a hand on her stomach. “When you hold your baby for the first time you can feel your heart grow a mile a minute. It is scary how much love you can feel at once, for a person you’ve literally just met.” Lorelai’s eyes glistened with joy and she realized how much she already loved that kid inside of her. Luke placed his hand above hers and hoped she was right.

Lorelai wiped a tear away and reached for another marshmallow to put on her skewer.

“Do you think we would have worked if we had gotten together earlier?” Lorelai asked curiously. Luke thought about it for a moment, then shook his head. “I have to believe that it happened when we were ready. I don’t want to dwell on the past or live with regrets. So I’m gonna say, that it probably wouldn’t have been successful.”

“Why?”

“Isn’t it obvious? We had to be close friends first. If we went on a date before knowing each other that well there would have never been a second date. You would’ve thought I am grumpy and boring, and I would’ve thought you were loud and annoying.”

Lorelai laughed. “Yes, okay that might be true. I am glad we were friends first. We could skip the awkward dating phase. I knew all your bad habits and you knew all my adorable quirks.”

Luke snorted, “Sure, if you wanna call it that way.” Lorelai laughed and boxed him softly in the shoulder. There it is, she thought. That familiar banter and teasing. They really should learn how to fight, without attacking each other and putting each other down.

Luke was twirling the empty skewer in his hand while Lorelai was still eagerly toasting and assembling her smores.

“Can I ask something about Rory?” Luke asked carefully. He had previously said that he was not going to talk about it again, but he missed Rory too, missed seeing the two of them together. Lorelai allowed the question, so Luke proceeded, “Are you planning on talking to her anytime soon?”

Lorelai bit her lip. “I’ve already told you what has to happen. I can’t make the first step.”

“Do you want me to talk to her?” Luke offered.

“What do you want to say to her?”

“I don’t know. I just feel like I have to do something,” Luke said leaving his shoulders hanging. “This isn’t right…”

“I know, but Rory has to figure that out. Talking didn’t get me anywhere, My parents rather turn her into their perfect Lorelai.” She knew how pathetic that sounded but Luke nodded. Lorelai was looking for another topic to bring up, but her thoughts were running around in circles. How Rory really was the daughter her parents never had. How she named her after herself. How she came up with the idea to call her Rory. Names, what a funny concept. Then a new thought popped into her head. “Why don’t you like being called Lucas?” she asked.

Luke was startled by the sudden change of conversation. “Uh… It sounds so formal. It’s what teachers called me, what my parents called me when they were angry with me. I just like Luke better. Short, simple, manly…,” Luke explained. Lorelai had imagined there to be a bigger story behind, but maybe it really was just Luke being Luke. She thought about her own name. She had always liked Lorelai. It was special and unique. She hated being called Lory in her early school years. Thankfully by the time she went to high school, that nickname had stayed behind. The only person that ever shortened her name was Christopher. If anyone else had called her that she would correct them, but Chris was Chris and she let it slide.

“Don’t you have a middle name?” she then asked, thinking that having one was quite common. At least all the other Hartford kids around her used to have one.

“No. No one in my family does,” Luke responded. “Maybe they were too lazy to come up with another one. What about you?”

“Victoria. I thought you knew that.”

“Maybe I did…” Luke tried to remember if they had talked about that before, or if he had read it somewhere. “I know Rory’s middle name is Leigh. I didn’t know she had one until they called her up at her graduation. What about your parents?”

“My dad’s full name is Richard William Gilmore and mom’s Emily Victoria Johnson.

“Related to President Johnson?” Luke wondered out loud and Lorelai laughed. “God, no. My mother would make a good dictator though. What about your parents?”

“You know my dad’s William Danes. He married my mom Katherine Abbott in 1965 same year I was born.”

“William and Katherine, what are you secretly part of the British royal family?”

Luke chuckled. “Yes, I’m secretly a prince. Now you know my secret and I have to kill you.”

“Aw, rats!” Lorelai snapped her fingers. “Now continue the story.”

Luke furrowed his brow. “What story?”

“Come on, Prince Charming, tell me about your life. You know everything about me. It’s time you give me the inside scoop. Please, Luke. I’ll start it for you,” Lorelai cleared her throat and began, “Once upon a time in 1965, it was a cold November… morning?” she raised and eyebrow at Luke and he nodded. “Morning, when Lucas Danes was born in..?” she gestured for Luke to finish the sentence.

“Saint Mary’s Hospital in Waterbury,” he sighed, and Lorelai gave his shoulder a nudge, so he continued talking. “Liz was born the year after and we lived in a house in the outskirts of Stars Hollow. My mom was a bookkeeper and my dad was in the army when they got married and started a family. He was sent to Vietnam soon after for about a year and when he came back he opened the hardware store around 1968, and that’s really all I know. That’s how I remember my childhood. Store, house, school, nothing much to tell.” Luke turned his marshmallow slowly over the flame looking sadly at it. Lorelai placed a hand on his thigh to reassure him. She wanted to ask what happened to his mother. It was time for him to tell her, but she still couldn’t ask directly. He had to be willing to share and open himself. They sat for a while, listening to the crackling of the fire, toasting marshmallows.

Luke took her hand into his and continued, “My mother died when I was fifteen. Car accident. Frontal collision. The other driver was on God knows what. Both died instantly.” Luke’s words came out hollow, unemotional, not angry or sad.

“Liz… Liz started drinking, smoking, running with the wrong crowd, anything to forget. Dad threw himself into work. I tried to hold it together. High school was a blur. Worked in the store, ran after Liz, lied to him and the school about what was going on. Joined the track team, they said it looked good on college applications. After graduation I took a year off to work more. Started playing baseball seriously and got a scholarship from UConn. Went there the following year. Liz got pregnant, married the deadbeat Mariano. She stayed in Stars Hollow for a while, then Jimmy ran, she had Jess and left in the middle of the night for New York. Broke dad’s heart… I went forth and back between home and college. Played lots of baseball, worked part time to help pay the bills, helped out in the store. Had my first serious relationship but she broke it off, because I didn’t spend enough time with her. Back then I though she was selfish, now I think she was right. And then dad got sick, lung cancer. He got better, he got worse, lots of ups and downs. The year I graduated; he was fully committed to the hospital. I didn’t go to the ceremony, never picked up my diploma. He passed later that year. I tried to keep the store open, but we were run out of business two years later. I had to close before losing all the money. Sold the house and put everything I had into the renovations. Opened the diner in 92. The girl I was seeing back then wanted kids, which freaked me out, so we broke it off and then I met Rachel. For the next three years she was in and out of my life and you know how that ended,” he finished and patted Lorelai’s hand. His marshmallow had completely melted off his stick and he threw it into the fire, then stretched his back. Lorelai was sitting, with her mouth open, digesting the story.

“Thank you, for telling me. It means a lot. I also have never heard you talk that much in one go. Wow!”

“Yeah, well, now you know it all,” Luke waved her off, hoping they could move on to something else.

“Oh no, I have so many questions!” Lorelai exclaimed and Luke groaned and rubbed his forehead. “About what?!” This was exactly why he usually didn’t talk that much.

“About the fact that you have a college degree! I didn’t know that. I don’t think anybody knows!” Lorelai pointed out, but Luke just shrugged. “So? It doesn’t matter.”

“Au contraire, my friend. It matters greatly. _You_ have a secret weapon. A college degree is like Kryptonite against my parents. If they ever make a snarky comment again, you can slap them in the face with your fancy diploma.”

“I just told you, I never got my diploma.”

“Minor detail,” Lorelai waved aside. “You’ve won. You’ve outrun the competition. Maybe my mother will finally see that you’re the far better man than…” The last word stuck in her throat as she realized what she was about to say, but Luke was quick and finished the sentence for her, “Christopher?”

“Well yes. You’ve beaten him in every category that is important to Emily Gilmore. You have a stable income, which means you are able to provide for your family.”

“Not sure she’d agree with that,” Luke interrupted.

Lorelai went on with her list. “You run your own business, successfully for more than a decade.”

“Which she thinks is a deathtrap that serves roadkill.”

“You are a college educated man.”

“From a university I am sure she wouldn’t approve… Lorelai, since when do you care what your parents think?”

Lorelai took a deep breath before she spoke. “Ugh, you’re right. You don’t have to prove anything to anybody. I still think you have an ace up your sleeve, but it’s totally up to you to use it. Uuugh, this sucks. My mother even gets to me although we haven’t spoken in weeks. I’m sorry. Hey, what did you major in?”

“If I tell you, will you let it go?” Luke asked sternly.

“Maybe.”

Luke groaned. Her ability to harp on about the same topic baffled him sometimes. He breathed deeply. “Civil Engineering.”

Lorelai gaped and needed a minute to process. She had imagined something more generic like business administration. “Man, you’re smart! Luke, that’s amazing!” Lorelai screamed in excitement. “It also explains why you know how to fix everything. One last question. I promise. Why didn’t you pursue a career in that? After you closed the hardware store, you could have opened an architecture office or something like that. Why a diner?”

Luke eyed her inquisitively, “I thought you liked the diner…”

“Of course I do, I love the coffee. Love the owner even more,” she winked at him.

“You don’t love me more than coffee,” Luke argued chuckling.

“We’re not debating that right now. So?”

“I wasn’t much into my degree. It was my dad’s dream for me. Without any experience in the field, I don’t think I would have been successful with my own business. I definitely didn’t want to work for a corporation. So I picked something I was passionate about. It helped that I knew people that could show me the ropes.”

“I sure am glad you opened that diner. Who would have kept me in coffee?” Lorelai couldn’t imagine Stars Hollow without the diner. It was a staple of the town. She fell right at home when she entered it for the first time and now she was technically living above it. Fate, the universe, or the coffee gods, had brought them together and she was very grateful for that.

Luke yawned and stretched in the seat next to her and she realized that the fire was almost burned down. They prepared for bed and some time later where lying next to each other on top of their sleeping bags, playing with each other’s hand. “What’s your favorite color?” Lorelai asked into the darkness and Luke laughed out loud. “I thought the game was over.”

“There’s still so much I don’t know about you!” she lamented and rolled onto her stomach to face Luke. He tucked a curl behind her ear and said, “You have a lifetime to figure it all out.”

Lorelai’s grin gleamed in the darkness. “Oh, you’re good,” she said and moved closer to Luke, kissing him eagerly.

Soon enough the temperature in the tent rose several degrees and they put the sentence ‘do it like animals’ to shame…

\---

Lorelai was woken up in the middle of the night by sounds outside the tent. Her first thought was that it was Luke but when she felt around for him, he was there next to her. She perked up her ears and didn’t move a muscle. She tried to remember if bears lived anywhere near here but frankly had no idea if there even were any bears in Connecticut. The sounds outside returned. It sounded like something was being slowly dragged over the grass. Lorelai’s heart was almost leaping out of her chest and she was sure whatever was out there must be hearing it too. She pushed her fist hard into Luke’s back, but he only grunted and rolled over. Damn it, she thought and pushed him harder. “Luke,” she hissed into his ear and flicked a finger against his forehead. Luke shot up and clenched his fists, when he noticed Lorelai kneeling next to him. “What ar…” he started saying but Lorelai pressed her palm over his mouth to shut him up. She pointed to her ear to make him listen. He realized that she was trembling and took her hand away from his face. The noise from outside returned and Luke reached for the zipper to peak outside, but Lorelai grabbed his wrist and looked at him panicked. Luke exhaled and pulled her closer into his arms and stroke her back. “Don’t worry, it’s not dangerous. Go back to sleep,” he whispered into her ear, and proceeded to lie down. Lorelai did as she was told but she was wide awake and still shaking lightly. Luke moved closer to her and laid one arm around her. It didn’t take long for him to fall asleep, he even started snoring, which Lorelai hoped was scaring the animal away and not making it angry. Luke’s rhythmic breathing lulled her to sleep after she was convinced, they were alone again.

\---

Lorelai woke up to an empty tent. It was already sunny and the sounds coming from outside weren’t scary anymore. She opened up the tent and stepped outside blinking into the sunlight and stretching herself. After the midnight terror she slept like a baby. She had thought she was too shaken up to sleep again but was glad she was proven otherwise.

Luke was wearing his board shorts again in combination with a flannel shirt, he had only buttoned up halfway and the sleeves rolled up. He held a mug up to her and grinned. Lorelai took the mug and sniffed. “Oh my god, is this!?”

Luke’s grin grew bigger as Lorelai took a sip. “This is Luke’s coffee! How did you make Luke’s coffee here?”

“I _am_ Luke. Every coffee I make is Luke’s coffee,” he laughed.

“You know what I mean,” she said happily and took another sip. “God, that’s good.”

“I thought you deserved something good. How did you sleep?”

“Actually, pretty good. My protector was there when I needed him,” she smiled at Luke. He took his cup of peppermint tea and wrapped an arm around her. They stood together watching the sun rising higher while sipping their drinks.

“What made all the noise?” she asked looking around, not noticing anything different than yesterday. “I don’t know, but whatever it was, it had its fun with one of the camping chairs. Found that one over there when I got up,” he gestured with his mug.

“Hm. Alright Ranger Danes, what are we doing today?”

Luke smirked. “We strike the tent and load it all up. I thought we could follow the river until we hit the beach and spend the day there. There are some nice places between here and New Heaven.”

“Won’t you be bored at the beach?”

“I went hiking, camping, fishing yesterday, I think I can handle some hours at the beach.”

“You’ve got yourself a deal. What’s for breakfast? Did you also bring pancakes from Luke’s?”

Luke took muffins out of a box and Lorelai gasped. He truly was the perfect man, she thought, while he himself bit into a whole wheat bagel.

They had everything wrapped up fairly quickly and headed towards the beach. Lorelai had unfolded the map across her legs and studied the names along the coastline, when she spotted a familiar name and folded the map back together. “Let’s go to Harvey’s beach. I used to go there when I was a kid. It’s quite beautiful.”

Luke looked over at her in surprise. “Really? I used to go there as well. Last time I’ve been I was like eighteen.”

“Huh. When you were eighteen I was fifteen, which was also the year I was there for the last time. You know, pregnant me wasn’t invited anymore. I used to go with my friend Trish and her family. It had that snack stand where the cute boy worked. Remember? He looked like Emilio Estevez.”

Luke raised an eyebrow. “Well, I remember the snack stand, not Emilio.”

“We used to do cartwheels to get his attention.”

“I remember my sister picking up someone's cigarette butt behind that stand and smoking it.”

“Ew!” Lorelai shrieked in disgust.

“We could have been there at the same time on the same day. Isn't that weird?” Luke asked.

“Nah, we never were,” she negated.

“How do you know?”

“You would have distracted me from the snack-stand guy. And no guy ever did.”

“I wouldn’t be so sure about that.”

“What are you talking about? Who could have resisted the charm of Butch Danes?” she teased, and Luke rolled his eyes.

\---

They arrived at Harvey’s beach within half an hour and parked the car. Luke took the camping chairs to the beach with them. Quite some people were already accumulated at the beach and they walked between umbrellas and chairs until Lorelai decided she had found the perfect spot and they set up the chairs and spread the towels over them. She got out of her clothes, she was wearing the bikini below and started applying sunscreen. Luke was sitting in his chair observing the people. It was exactly the way he remembered it. The snack bar got upgraded but it was still at the same place. Nature, he thought, is so dependable. It doesn’t suddenly change or disappear. Two decades had passed and it was still the same. Lorelai waved the sunscreen bottle in front of his face. “Hello? Earth to Luke, please,” she said and waited for him to take the bottle. She had already asked twice but Luke didn’t react. “Uh, sorry what?” he asked and finally took the bottle out of her hand.

“The back please,” she said and turned on her chair to face away from Luke. He squirted some into his palm and hesitated. He had never in his life creamed anyone else and wondered how many ‘firsts’ he had already experienced since he was with Lorelai and how many more were to come. He started rubbing his hands up and down her back, gliding his fingers over her shoulders and massaging the cream into the skin. Lorelai leaned into his touch and relaxed. After several minutes, a small moan of pleasure escaped her throat and Luke realized he forgot what his actual task was about. “Mmmmh, Luuuuke,” she sought, and Luke swallowed. He got some more cream and finished her lower back quickly. Lorelai turned around to him, “Well, that’s the best someone has ever applied sunscreen,” she said, trying to wink at him and jumped up enthusiastically. “Let’s go for a swim!”

Luke blushed ever so lightly and cleared his throat, “I can’t right now.”

“What? Why not? Scared of Bruce?” she teased and tried to pull his arm.

“No,” Luke said adjusting his hat, “You made inappropriate sounds and now I can’t get up.”

“Ooooh! You want some cold water?” Lorelai giggled and plopped back down on her chair.

“I’m good thanks, just a minute.”

Lorelai leaned over and pulled his chin closer, brushing her lips over his before planting a kiss. Luke pressed against her and their kiss deepened. Lorelai moved away just an inch and Luke rested his forehead against hers. “Not helping,” he whispered, and Lorelai leaned back in her chair with a satisfied grin.

Luke smiled and took the sunscreen again to apply on himself. When he finished, he relaxed in his chair and turned the hat around so it would actually do the job it was intended to. Lorelai had started reading a magazine she had bought at the snack stand earlier and they sat in silence for a while. When she glanced over at Luke to see if he was asleep, she had to do a double take. “Wow, you look weird!” she exclaimed.

Luke turned his head slowly towards Lorelai, “Excuse me?”

“Your hat. You wear it like normal people do.”

“So? It provides shadow this way.”

“Don’t you have sunglasses?”

“No, I have a hat,” he said matter-of-factly and pointed at it. Lorelai snatched it from his head, jumped a few feet away from Luke and placed it backwards on her head. “Race me to the water and you might get it back”, she challenged him and started running away. Luke sprinted after her and grabbed her arm before she was even halfway across the beach. “Not fair, Butch!” she tried to wring her arm free, but Luke wrapped the other arm around her waist and snatched the hat off her head, holding it up high in the air. “Please, don’t ruin the hat,” Luke said sternly while Lorelai was fighting his tight grip around her.

“What’s the big deal?  I know you have others…”

Luke released Lorelai and dropped his arm, “What do you mean ‘others’? I wear this hat every day.”

“Isn’t that a bit unhygienic?” Lorelai asked with an appalled facial expression. “I thought you had several hats that just looked the same…”

“No, it isn’t. I hand wash it ever so often,” Luke responded slightly offended, then added fondly, “I love this hat. It’s the one you gave me.”

Luke’s sentimentality made her gasp in awe. Whenever his gruff exterior revealed his softer side, Lorelai’s heart melted. “You really do hang on to the stuff I give you,” she choked and wrapped Luke into a hug. He kissed the top of her head, “Yeah, well what you give me is worth holding onto.”

Lorelai chuckled, “Cheesy! Now get rid of your shirt and join me.”

\---

The day went by quickly. They swam and had an early lunch at the snack bar, then rented an umbrella to lounge in the shadow. Lorelai had suggested a walk and that’s what they did. They talked about Harvey beach and their vacations there. Luke felt more at ease talking about his childhood, now that Lorelai knew most of it. Lorelai suggested that they should take more holiday’s like this and bring the kids in the future. By kids she meant Rory and their baby, but she didn’t say that out loud. When they got back it was already half past three and Luke thought about leaving soon. The drive back to Stars Hollow took about an hour and he didn’t want to arrive there too late, to check in with Tom on the constructions.

Lorelai excused herself to the rest room. Luke went to the bar and got a beer. He leaned against the beach bar table that had an umbrella at its center and sipped the cool drink.

Lorelai left the lavatories and saw that their chairs were still unattended. She looked around for a man in a hat and flannel shirt but couldn’t make him out. Then she spotted Luke’s bare back and noticed he was talking to a girl with long blond hair and a great body. Lorelai felt a small sting in her abdomen and walked over but the girl had left before she reached Luke. “You owe me an ice cream Hasselhoff,” she demanded, and Luke raised an eyebrow. “And why is that?” he asked skeptically. “You flirted with another woman,” she pouted, which made Luke laugh out loud. “First of all, I didn’t flirt. You know I am physically incapable of flirting. Second, she was more Hasselhoff than I am, and third, what ice cream would you like?”

Lorelai giggled and snatched the dollar bills Luke held out to her. “So who was the woman?”

Luke shook his head in amusement. “The lifeguard. They are looking for more people and she handed me this leaflet. They are having a recruiting day on Saturday.”

“Oh,” she said feeling a bit stupid. “I bet you’d be good at that…”

“I have a job, now let’s get your ice cream.”

\---

Their two-day trip ended with them checking in with Tom. They had to make some decisions regarding floorboards and other details. The constructions came along nicely and in about two months they would be able to move in.

The hot days of July were soon over, and Lorelai was glad she had the hottest month behind her, while not being 9 months pregnant.

The first week of August arrived and with it her 12-week checkup. They had previously done some test to check the baby’s health and determined that there were no genetic disorders present. Dr. Santiago had also told them that though the tests they could determine the gender already and Luke and Lorelai agreed that they wanted to know.

\---

Luke had the window rolled down, his left arm leaning out the truck, looking relaxed. Lorelai wondered if he was as nonchalant as he looked, he was sometimes hard to read. As she was studying his face he looked over and raised an eyebrow, “What?”

“What are you hoping for?” she asked.

 “I told you, I am remaining impartial. I am happy with whatever,” he responded coolly.

Lorelai didn’t believe him, although she had asked him over the past few days at least a hundred times and he always gave the same answer. “Come on, Luke, you must have a preference. You want it to be a boy, right?”

“No,” Luke sighed. Not this again he thought.

“So you want it to be a girl?”

“No, _you_ want it to be a girl,” Luke returned, Lorelai already going on his nerves. Lorelai didn’t like that he was trying to turn the tables and snubbed, “I didn’t say that!”

“Neither did I,” he grumbled and hoped the topic was over. Lorelai pursed her lips. She had thought about the sex of the baby a lot lately and she couldn’t make up her mind on her preference. She had a daughter; she knew how to raise a girl. Maybe she did want to have another daughter. On the other hand, she didn’t want to replace Rory. Lorelai looked back at Luke and thought how cute it would be to have a small version of him running around. A boy would be different, new. She had no idea how to raise a boy. She didn’t have any brothers or close cousins as a reference, so the boy stuff was foreign to her. Sookie had a boy, she could ask her.

She started drumming with her fingers on her leg, deep in thought when Luke took her left hand and gave it a squeeze. “Hey, don’t be nervous. Whatever we’re having, it’s gonna be great. We can do this.” With this he parked the car in front of the clinic, and they got out. Luke took her by the hand, and they walked in together, smiling excitedly.

 

> [ ](https://www.instagram.com/p/B5BDXVWA1KH/?utm_source=ig_embed&utm_campaign=loading)
> 
> [ View this post on Instagram ](https://www.instagram.com/p/B5BDXVWA1KH/?utm_source=ig_embed&utm_campaign=loading)
> 
> [A post shared by Atlas (@atlas.jr)](https://www.instagram.com/p/B5BDXVWA1KH/?utm_source=ig_embed&utm_campaign=loading) on Nov 18, 2019 at 10:14am PST

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading, the kudos, and the comments!💕  
> Also, check out the drawing I made of Luke at the beach. 😉  
> You find the link above. Enjoy!  
> Atlas.


	6. The Four Horsemen Return

**1 st WEEK OF AUGUST**

Lorelai entered the Dragonfly, still a little bit shaken. Luke had dropped her off at the Inn after they came back from Dr. Santiago’s office. She went into the kitchen looking for Sookie and coffee, definitely a coffee moment…

\---

Luke walked into the diner and took the specials board down. He popped his head into the kitchen to let Caesar know he was back and ready to work in ten minutes. Caesar wanted to ask how it went but Luke had already left the kitchen again and his voice had sounded weird. Maybe something bad happened, he thought and hoped his boss was doing alright.

Luke took a rag from the sink and erased the writing of the board He didn’t change his specials often which he realized every time he tried to erase that board and had to scrub like an idiot. In a drawer in the kitchen, he had chalkboard markers and got them out. Usually, the white marker was all he needed but today he felt like some color might be appropriate and sat down at the table.  As he wrote the words a sense of finality washed over him. This was it.

When he finished, he looked at the sign with satisfaction and hung it back in its place above the kitchen door. Resting his hands on his hips, he nodded and tried to mentally prepare himself for the day.

\---

“Sookie?! I need you!” Lorelai entered the kitchen and headed straight for the coffee maker. Sookie emerged from the pantry and saw Lorelai fixing herself a mug. “You know, Luke will kill me if I let you drink that. Dou you really want me murdered in cold blood?” Sookie teased but immediately dropped her grin when Lorelai gave her wild eyes. “I need to talk to you,” Lorelai demanded and dragged Sookie back into the pantry, closing the door behind them.

“Uhm, okay look, I know we had other plans but the chilled watercress soup with Za’atar went really well with the rest of the menu and Jackson had…”

“What soup?? Sookie, I am not here to discuss any menu with you. I trust you completely.”

“Oh, well then why did you drag me in here?” Sookie asked confused.

Lorelai sometimes wished more than just food-related topics would stick with her friend, but she didn’t want to argue so she took a deep breath before she spoke. “I was at the doctor’s this morning, remember?”

Sookie shrieked as she recollected what that visit was about and jumped happily up and down. “You know the gender. You know the gender! Ahh, this is so exciting!” She further squealed but Lorelai didn’t join in. “You don’t look excited. What is it? Couldn’t they figure it out?” Sookie asked sadly.

“Oh no, they figured it out all right. Apparently, the Danes men are all well-endowed,” Lorelai huffed sarcastically and started pacing within the small room. Sookie looked at her friend in shock. Did she really just talk about Luke’s… size? Sookie had always been curious what the diner man looked like beneath all the flannel, but Lorelai usually wasn’t very forthcoming. Maybe this was the only chance she’ll ever get. “So… what are we talking here about? Zucchini? Cucumber? Eggplant??” Sookie’s eyes went wider as Lorelai didn’t react. “I… I don’t know what to say… Why is that a problem now? Did Luke poke the baby while… you know?” Sookie grimaced and tried not to picture it.

“Oh my god, Sookie!” Lorelai snapped and rubbed her temples. “NOT what I meant!”

“Then what is it? You come here all freaked out and talking about the Danes men being all…” Sookie’s voice trailed off as she remembered the words Lorelai had said and she finally understood the sarcastic innuendo. “OH MY GOD, IT’S A BOY!”

\---

“IT’S A BOY!” Patty shrieked loudly making the hole diner jump and stare at her standing in the doorway. Luke chuckled behind the counter. It took exactly one hour and 37 minutes for the first person to notice the new special board. Patty took a seat at the counter and patted Luke’s hand. “I’m so happy for you, Luke. Not that I don’t think you could handle a daughter but boy that poor girl would suffer with you as her father…”

“Excuse me?!” Luke said offendedly and tried to get his hand back.

“But a boy for you is great! As long as he turns out like Rory, not like that nephew of yours. But don’t worry, we’ll all keep an eye on your precious one. So, how’s Lorelai taking it? She very disappointed?” Patty looked concerned and Luke’s blood froze. He initially wanted to bark at her for insulting his family but the mention of Lorelai possibly being upset over their future child made his heart sink. “What? Why would she..? Did she say something?!” he stammered. Lorelai had said that she was happy and excited in the exam room in front of Dr. Santiago, but maybe she didn’t mean it. Now that he thought of it, she was uncharacteristically silent on the way home. He was so happy he didn’t pay much attention to her, but he should have. ‘Stupid Danes!’ he scolded himself.

“Aw, honey I’m sure she’ll come around. I just always assumed Lorelai would love another baby girl. She was so good with Rory and I just never imagined her with a boy.” Patty continued caressing his arm and Luke had to swallow hard.

\---

“I don’t know anything about boys, Sookie. I need your help!” Lorelai yammered and sipped her coffee. “You need to tell me everything. Lay it on me. The good, the bad, and the ugly.”

“Honestly as babies they are pretty much the same. Well, boys can pee straight up in your face while you change them, which isn’t fun. Especially not when you weren’t expecting it and your mouth was open and…” Lorelai looked that disturbed and disgusted that Sookie changed the direction of her answer. “Martha and Davie have very different sleeping and eating patterns, but I don’t think this has anything to do with the gender either. They are just different people. Also, Davie is not even two so I can’t give you much feedback on how to raise a boy.”

“So, you’ve got nothing?” Lorelai groaned.

“Why are you so stressed about this? Did Luke say something?”

“No, I think he is really happy, planning future fishing trips and whatnot.” Both women could perfectly picture Luke showing the ropes to his mini version.

“I always imagine Davie one day helping Jackson on the field. You know wearing his tiny overall and the same hat as Jackson. I’m gonna buy him little gardening tools and then the two of them can bond over berries and carrots,” Sookie giggled at her mental image.

Lorelai thought of all the things that Luke liked to do and seemed to have no one to share them with. Working on his boat, building things with his hands, teaching someone how to use the tools, how to cook and how to play baseball. Watch games together and discuss the plays, the teams, the stats. Go fishing and hiking, exploring the great outdoors. Luke had to give so much as a father and a friend.

If she didn’t have Rory, she wouldn’t know with whom she would share all her crazy passions. Of course, she had Sookie and Luke as well as other friends she could share her life with but nothing compared to the bond she had with her daughter. They could gush over actors and discuss plotlines of movies for hours. Share music and fashion tips with each other. Learn from each other every single day. She had a pal for life that she could teach everything she liked, show her the things she loved.

She hoped that Luke would have the same connection with his son because it was truly the most beautiful thing in the world.

But… where would _she_ find space in that relationship? She’d be the third wheel, the intruder, the one that doesn’t understand the inside jokes. She could see them roll their eyes at her in unison and walk away arm in arm, leaving her behind, clueless and lonely.

“… and then Martha and your boy get married and WE will be related!” Sookie announced proudly. She had just created a master plan for the life of their respective children. Lorelai blinked. Apart from that last sentence, she hadn’t heard anything Sookie had said, too preoccupied with her own self-destructive thoughts. She couldn’t help herself and started crying. “My boy is gonna leave me!” she sobbed and covered her face, while sitting down on a crate.

Sookie thought she had inflicted those feelings and felt very guilty. “Oh no, honey. They will live in Stars Hollow together. They won’t go anywhere. They can have kids right here and we will be grandparents and it all will be okay.” Sookie kneeled next to Lorelai, rubbed her back and hoped that the outburst was purely hormonal.

“He will like Luke better than me and they’ll do manly things together and… and then they don’t need me and I’m gonna be all alone,” she sobbed further, shaking slightly and holding on to Sookie’s shoulders.

“That’s ridiculous! The kid will love you. You’re such a good mother and trust me Luke needs you, now more than ever. He loves you and he’ll always need you. You’re a team,” Sookie explained and hoped her words would soothe Lorelai. Calming down a pregnant woman was a delicate undertaking and any word could trigger the wrong reaction. She knew that from own experience and had apologized to the people around her retrospectively.

Lorelai just started crying more and muttered “I’m horrible! I’m selfish and I’m jealous.”

“Don’t say that,” Sookie tried but was cut short.

“It’s true! I don’t want to share my kid. I want him all to myself but Luke… Luke is so wonderful, and he deserves to have everything he ever wanted and here I am ruining it,” Lorelai cried, loudly and Sookie cringed. She had never seen her like that. “Have you talked to Luke about this?”

“NO!” Lorelai shrieked which caused her to hiccup. “I don’t want him to hate me.”

‘Oh boy, what has she talked herself into here’ Sookie thought and shook her head. “That’s not gonna happen. There’s nothing you can do that will make Luke hate you. He’s crazy about you. And that little boy is very lucky to have you two as his parents. He’s going to be all that you love about Luke but friendlier and funnier because he is also half you. The two of you are gonna drive Luke up a wall because we all know you love getting under his skin. He’ll probably drink too much coffee and if he’s sporty like Luke he’s gonna have endless energy and you and Luke won’t be able to keep up. He might play baseball and Luke will plotz with pride. You might finally see Luke cry. Happy tears of course. This and much more is just waiting for you. It’s gonna be magical.” Sookie explained calmly.

“And then he’s gonna marry Martha and make us grandparents, right?” Lorelai chuckled and dried her eyes with the back of her hand. The tears had finally stopped flowing.

“Exactly!” Sookie grinned and gave Lorelai’s shoulder an encouraging pat.

“That does sound pretty great, doesn’t it?” Lorelai asked and Sookie nodded fiercely. “I think, I want that, Sookie,” she smiled and got up, straightening out her clothes.

“You have it. Now, honey, I don’t want to freak you out again but uhm… does Luke know you’re happy or is he also freaking out at the diner all by himself?”

“Oh god, Sookie I have to go!” Lorelai shouted and hurried out to the parking lot. She didn’t see her Jeep and remembered that Luke had given her a ride. “Damn it,” she muttered and started half running, half walking towards the town center.

\---

Luke had to know what Lorelai was thinking and he had to know right that moment. He excused himself to Caesar and ran out the door in the direction of the Inn. He was in full sprint and had already crossed the town square, when he thought he should have taken the truck to be there faster. Thank goodness he had started working on his endurance, so he knew he could make it to the Inn without collapsing halfway.

He reached the dusty gravel road leading up the hill to the Inn and lowered his pace. He saw someone approaching and hurried once more. “Lorelai! What are you doing here?”

Lorelai stopped and tried to catch her breath. She stood bent over resting her hands on her knees. “I needed to see you,” she panted. “We are having a boy!”

“I know. I uh… Patty came into the diner and drove me crazy. I don’t even know why I listened, but I got worried and I had to make sure you were okay. I thought you might be… disappointed,” Luke said looking at the ground, kicking some stones away.

Lorelai saw the worry in his eyes and had to correct that quickly. “I’m not! I was a little freaked out, not gonna lie. I really thought it was a girl because everything felt like it did with Rory. But I’m NOT disappointed, Luke. It’s a boy and he’s healthy and he’s you. He’s perfect and I’m so happy!” she smiled at Luke and tears had started running down her cheeks, again.

Luke searched her face for a second to see if this time she was telling the truth. He wrapped his arms around her and held her close. “Good, cause I’m so darn happy myself and I _really_ can’t do this without you.” He placed a soft kiss on her forehead, and they hugged tighter, standing in the middle of the dusty road for a long time.

\---

**SHOPPING CENTER – 2 nd WEEK OF AUGUST**

Lorelai and Sookie pushed an already full shopping cart through the aisles of the baby section. “I can highly recommend these bottles. Both Davie and Martha love them. And we have to check out the pacifiers. Are you gonna breastfeed?” Sookie asked bluntly and turned to Lorelai, who was startled by the abrupt halt.

“Uhm… I haven’t thought about that yet…” Lorelai tried to avoid the topic and looked around for Luke who for sure would be freaked out by that discussion.

“Did you do it with Rory?” Sookie kept questioning. Ever since they had started talking about pregnancy-related topics, Sookie had lost all sense of boundaries, not that she had a good understanding of those, to begin with. She had told Lorelai stories about her pregnancies and births, that made Lorelai’s skin crawl.

“I did yes,” Lorelai answered. “It was cheaper than buying formula. I just don’t know if I want to do it again. I am not sixteen anymore.”

Sookie gave her a bewildered look, “I don’t think age matters…”

“Oh, trust me it does. Teenager skin is like Silly Putty. My boobs are still upstairs. I don’t wanna go looking for them in the cellar by next year. I am already scared of parting with my favorite jeans for good.”

“You worry too much,” Sookie said and pushed the cart forward, throwing some more things from a shelf into it.

“Maybe. Where are the boys?” Lorelai looked around still not spotting them.

“Jackson is showing Luke the strollers. He takes this _very_ seriously. He talks about them like they are sports cars. It’s quite entertaining,” Sookie chuckled and steered towards the wet wipes and powders.

\---

“What is all this crap?” Luke asked accusingly, pointing to the shopping cart that was already full to the brim. Lorelai and Sookie exchanged bemused glances. “What do you mean ‘crap’? It’s stuff we need,” Lorelai pointed out and simply shrugged.

“We?!” Luke frowned. “You mean _you_. This isn’t baby stuff. It’s all clothes. _For you!_ ” He crossed his arms and glowered, his patience quickly slipping away. Lorelai knew that Luke hated shopping and he was trying really hard to accept that this was a necessary trip to the mall, but this also was the fourth hour being here. She took a deep breath and plastered the biggest smile on her face. “Luke, honey, sweetheart, I _need_ those clothes. You might have realized that my usual outfits don’t fit that well anymore and if you want this baby to grow, I need maternity clothes.”

“That many?! You are not pregnant for the next ten years! You’ve got here the same top five times!” Luke ranted, making Sookie and Jackson slowly retreat backward. Lorelai didn’t want to cause a scene in the breast-pump aisle, so she wrapped her arms around Luke’s neck. “It’s not the same top, it’s different colors _and_ different sizes. Please, Luke, we’re almost done. Hold on a little longer,” she pleaded and kissed his lips softly until he returned the kiss. Thank goodness, this still worked, she thought and dragged Luke over to the baby clothes section.

Half an hour later the shopping cart was overflowing, and they decided to sort out their choices in order to reduce their expenses when Luke held a light blue onesie furiously up. “You can’t be seriously wanting this?!” His eyes shot daggers at Lorelai.

The onesie had written ‘I was the fastest swimmer’ on the chest with a depiction of a smiling sperm giving two thumbs up. “Oh, come on, it’s funny _and_ true,” Lorelai giggled and tried to snatch it out of Luke’s hand.

“Not gonna happen. In fact, I veto all the ones with stupid sayings or cutsie phrases,” Luke stated and threw the sperm one on the ‘NO’ pile.

“Okay, party pooper what about that one then?” she challenged Luke and held up a white onesie saying ‘I ♥ MY DADDY’ in colorful letters. Luke looked at it for a minute before dropping his chin, focusing back on the pile of clothes before him. “That one’s all right,” he mumbled not looking up. “Ha ha! Gotcha!” Lorelai triumphed and placed it back into the cart.

\---

“I think we’re done,” Lorelai clapped her hands and Luke exhaled loudly. “Sookie, where’s the list?” she asked, and her friend waved a piece of paper in the air. “Read aloud,” Lorelai ordered, and Sookie went over the detailed list one by one, Lorelai replied to each item with ‘check’. “Hallelujah,” Sookie sang and put the list back in her bag. “Now that I know every single thing you have, planning your baby shower is going to be a piece of cake. OH! I need to decide on a cake!” Sookie took the paper out again and a pen and started scribbling down notes. Jackson and Luke pushed each a cart to the check-out. While they loaded the items onto the belt at the cash register, Lorelai stopped Luke in his movements. “How are we gonna pay for all this?”

Luke lifted an eyebrow and continued unloading the cart. “With money…” he said coolly, and Lorelai gave him the ‘duh’ look. “What I mean is, how do we split the bill?”

“Ah, I thought we do it like we handle the bills from Tom. I pay upfront and you give me half back whenever you want.” Luke didn’t think it was a big deal, but he saw in Lorelai’s expression that this was not the answer she was looking for. “What do you suggest?” he asked biting his lower lip.

“Don’t you think we should join our accounts already? Once we are married, we’ll share all kinds of expenses and a joint payment system makes that easier. I don’t want to keep running after receipts and do the whole ‘who owes whom what’ much longer,” she said and noticed that Luke seemed annoyed.

“When we’re married huh? Gee when’s that gonna be…” Luke muttered under his breath, but Lorelai heard him clearly and decided to ignore the snide comment. He probably was in a mood since the shopping trip took so long. He knew that what she suggested made perfect sense. They were going to live together, share housing costs and living expenses. He just never thought Lorelai would suggest joining their bank accounts, she was after all fiercely independent. “Whatever you want,” he shrugged but there was again that expression on her face, telling him he said the wrong thing.

Lorelai narrowed her eyes. She was not in a fighting mood. “It’s not about what I want, Luke. It’s about how we want to face the future, what makes sense, and what _we_ feel comfortable with. You are entitled to your own opinion and when we discuss this, I want your honesty. You don’t have to agree to whatever I say, okay?”

“Fine… Can I pay now? I _really_ want to leave,” he rumbled and got his wallet out.

“Sure, Daddy, go exhaust your plastic,” Lorelai smiled sweetly and gave his shoulder a friendly clap, as she pushed the empty trolley past the cashier. Luke rolled his eyes and paid.

\---

**LUKE’S DINER – LUNCH TIME – 3 rd WEEK OF AUGUST**

“Service here sucks.”

Luke turned around ready to bark at this rudeness, when he was greeted with a familiar smirk.

“Jess! What are you doing here?” Luke exclaimed surprised and hurried around the counter to wrap his nephew in a hug. “You’re not in trouble, are you?” he looked down at Jess, checking if he was injured or looked hurt.

“Jesus, since when do we hug!?” Jess pushed Luke away from him and took a step back. “I’m good. I came to see you,” he shrugged and pushed his hands deep into the jeans pockets.

“What did prompt you to do that? Is Liz okay?” Luke’s worry grew by the second.

“Will you relax! Everything’s fine. How are you gonna deal with a kid? You’re being all jumpy.” Jess scoffed.

“Sorry, it’s just, _you_ are here. Unannounced. It’s been a while…” Luke tried to explain his worried reaction, not finding the words.

Jess took a deep breath. “Yeah. I know, but you called, told me about your big news about Lorelai and all. I thought I drop by and uhm… congratulations,” he finished lamely and extended a hand.

Luke’s frown turned into a lopsided grin and he shook Jesse’s hand. “You didn’t have to come all the way here to tell me that.” There was an awkward pause as the two men stood in front of each other silently. Luke finally asked if Jess was hungry and gestured him to sit at the counter. Luke himself went behind the counter to move past the awkwardness. Jess took a seat and placed the backpack he was carrying on the stool next to him. “You inviting?” he asked sheepishly and Luke gave a soft chuckle and a nod in response.

“Cheeseburger with a Coke,” he ordered, and Luke disappeared quickly in the kitchen, returning with the Coke. He placed the cup in front of Jess and asked, “So, you still living in that crap pile in New York?”

Jess took a sip and started nervously massaging his knuckles. “No, I’ve actually got some news myself.”

Luke leaned against the back counter and folded his arms, nodding with his chin towards Jess, “Do tell.”

“I moved to Philadelphia. Joined a small publishing house. Permanent address, decent money.”

“Wow, Jess, that’s great! You deserve that.” Luke looked at his nephew proudly. He never doubted his abilities and was relieved to hear he was doing well.

“Thanks, but that’s not all. Here, I got you something,” Jess opened his backpack and pulled a small rectangular object wrapped in brown paper out of it. He handed it over to Luke, who carefully unwrapped it and held it in his hands. “You… got me a book?” he asked skeptically and looked at Jess.

“Read!” Jess instructed him harshly, barely keeping his nerves in check.

Luke took a closer look. “The Subsect by Jess… Danes??” Luke looked up, eyes wide, mouth gaped open. He forgot how to move - or breathe. He could just stare at Jess in disbelief.

“You know, when you write a novel, you need to decide what to print on the cover and it’s pretty permanent, so you gotta make sure it’s right.”

Luke swallowed hard and found his voice, “You… you wrote this?” He looked back down at the book and turned it in his hands.

“Yup.”

“You changed your name?” Luke stared back at Jess, still trying to process what the boy in front of him was trying to tell him.

“Yup. Legal stuff took a while but got my new ID last week.”

“Why?” Luke chocked out.

“I thought a lot about who I am, who I want to be… Mom kept her name and uhm… there’s _you_. This is my family. This is what I want.”

Luke swallowed again, looking between the book and Jess, he was completely overwhelmed.

“I uh…” Luke was trying to keep it together as he took a shaky breath. Thankfully Caesar called out for him and Luke turned around to pick up Jesse’s burger. He put the plate down and cleared his throat. “I am honored, Jess. Really, but you didn’t have to do that. You already belong…”

“I know,” Jess cut him off. “I wanted to.”

Luke nodded and finally smiled. “Does Liz know?”

Jess bit into the burger and mumbled a ‘yeah’ through his bite. Luke went to attend some customers and delivered plates. When he returned to the spot opposite Jess, he had finished his burger and asked if Rory was around since it was Saturday and he knew that Rory usually went home over the weekend. Luke stiffened a little, he didn’t know if he was supposed to tell Jess the truth. They had a complicated history after all, and to Luke’s knowledge, Rory was still with the punk that stole a yacht. Jess pushed Luke for answers until the older man caved and told him the full story. He actually realized that it felt good talking about it. Lorelai was avoiding the topic and he had no one else to talk about it. At least not anybody he trusted.

Jess went through every possible emotion, while Luke was telling him what had happened. His decision was formed before Luke even finished. “I guess I’m going to Hartford then,” he said decisively.

“Jess, don’t do anything stupid,” Luke warned him. If this backfired, it would be all his fault.

Jess noticed the worry in his uncle’s voice and raised his hands in innocence, “Hey, I’m just going to see an old friend. Bring her a present.”

Luke exhaled loudly when an idea struck him.

\---

**GILMORE MANSION – EVENING**

On his way to Hartford, Jess was contemplating on what to say when ringing the doorbell. He knew a maid would probably open, so he hoped he could get to Rory without seeing the grandmother. Luke had mentioned a pool house… maybe he could sneak around and get there without knocking on any doors. When he reached the Gilmore’s driveway, he was in luck as he saw Rory getting out of her car and he slipped quickly through the open gate.

They greeted each other awkwardly and Jess tried to ease the tension with a joke about driveway stalking. It half worked he thought and then remembered he was holding a takeout bag from Luke’s and handed it to Rory. “Luke’s sending his _love_ ,” Jess rolled his eyes at that word. “He wasn’t sure if it was okay to tell me, so I guess this is an apology in advance. I would have brought coffee too, but that’d be disgusting by now…”

Rory chuckled and peeked into the bag. Her favorite muffins, as well as some Danishes, were in the bag and she felt a small sting in her chest. Luke knew her so well. “It’s okay. So, what are you doing here? You’re not just Luke’s errand boy, are you?”

Jess scoffed, “No, I'm in town on a little business and a little pleasure. All nice and aboveboard.”

“And I am…?” Rory asked smirking and Jess had to grin. “I know this is kind of weird, but there's actually something I wanted to tell you. Show you, actually,” Jess explained and saw that Rory glanced absently up at the house. “I can come back another time…”

Rory assured him, that it was okay, and they entered the house. Rory closed the door behind them, took a pillow from the bed and put it on the foot of the door. “So our voices don't carry,” she explained and gestured Jess to take a seat.

“Very prudent,” he replied and looked around the room. He had been in this house before, but not upstairs. His face expression must have said enough, because Rory felt the need to explain that this wasn’t much her taste.

“Yeah, not unless you've aged about 90 years,” Jess laughed and took a seat on the ottoman. Rory sat opposite him at the foot end of her bed. “I haven't. I'm just here temporarily. My mom and I…”

“Luke alluded to something,” he grimaced and hoped it was okay.

“Right,” Rory nodded, wondering how much Luke had told him. “So, where are you living, Jess? I want to know about you, mystery man.”

“I'm in Philly.”

“Really? Rory looked surprised.

“Don't laugh,” he looked at the floor embarrassed.

“No, I'm not. Philadelphia's gotten cool.”

“And New York's gotten expensive. Anyway, it's a pretty cool scene in Philly now. Lots of younger people there...pretty big art scene,” Jess explained.

“I know. I read that in the New York Times,” Rory said and started babbling about a photograph she had seen. She suddenly realized how nervous she was, sitting in front of her ex-boyfriend, who looked really good and had that charming smile on all the time. When he admitted to being nervous as well, she eased a little.

“So,” Jess said.  “I didn't just come here to chat. I wanted to show you something.” He took his bag and started looking for something.

“Right. You said that.”

“Yeah, and I didn't think you'd believe it if I didn't show it to you in person,” he continued going through his bag until he pulled a book out and gave it to her.

“Well, color me curious. A book,” Rory noted and read the cover. "The Subsect… written by Jess Danes." Similar to Luke, her eyes went wide and she had to swallow several times.

“It's no misprint,” he pointed out and hoped she liked it.

“You wrote a book? You changed your name?” Rory stared at him, transfixed.

“A short novel and yes I did,” he said eyeing her curiously.

“You wrote a book and changed your name?!” Rory exclaimed and immediately slapped her hand over her mouth. She sat still for a second listening and keeping an eye on the door. Jess did the same and when there were no sounds coming from outside, Rory dropped her hand and whispered enthusiastically, “You wrote a book and changed your name?!”

“And through a fluke, I got it to these guys that have a small press, and they read it. I don't know if they were high or something, but they decided to publish it. There's no money in it. They only printed like 500 of them. Believe me, I'm not quitting my day job.”

“Wow! Jess that’s… wow! Why did you change your name? Did something happen with your dad?” Rory remembered that he went to California to meet his father. Maybe the meeting didn’t go well, and her heart sank. She wanted only the best for Jess and still cared a lot about his well-being.

“No, nothing happened. That’s the point. Jimmy is… he’s a stranger who happens to be my father. I didn’t want to stare at his name all day. So, I decided to take mom’s instead.”

It’s also Luke’s name,” Rory pointed out, knowing that he probably did it more for Luke than Liz.

Jess smiled shyly. “I know. You should’ve seen his face when I gave him the book.”

“I bet that was great,” Rory chuckled, trying to picture the scene. Luke was neither great at being surprised nor showing emotions. “Did he cry?”

“God, no! We were in the diner,” Jess chortled. “But he temporarily lost the ability to form words, so I’d say he was pretty close.”

“That big ol’ softie,” Rory giggled and shook her head in adoration. Luke really was a great guy. She was happy that her mom had finally realized that too. And now they were going to have a family and Rory’s heart ached. “Hey, Jess, did you happen to see my mom there?

“No, but I am staying with them tonight. Want me to give her a message?” he offered.

“No, that’s okay. Thanks. I just want to know if she’s… good.” A sad smile formed on her lips.

Jess lowered his head to meet her eye and said, “I’ll make sure to ask,” which earned him a genuine smile. “It's kind of late. I should go, but if you want and are free, we could hang tomorrow. You know where to find me.”

“Sure, that’d be great. I uh… I call you.” They exchanged phone numbers and said goodbye. “I'll sneak out on my own,” Jess said and removed the pillow from the door to slip out.

\---

**LUKE’S APARTMENT - NIGHT**

Jess opened the apartment door carefully, expecting the tiny flat to be completely dark. It was late and he knew his uncle went to bed early but was surprised by Lorelai sitting on the couch, with her legs crossed. She was watching TV with the sound off and ate ice cream out of the bucket. “Hey Jess,” she whispered and gave him a smile. “Pop Tart?” she offered and held a box up to him. Jess didn’t know where they were standing. They had seen each other last time at Liz’s wedding and they hadn’t spoken much then, but it had been civil. He took the box and sat next to her, curious about what she was watching.

He recognized Chaplin immediately and had to chuckle, which caused Lorelai to glance at him. “Clever, but you know you could hook up headphones to the TV, right?” he whispered leaning a bit closer to her.

“Uhm… never thought of that,” she admitted and then had to chuckle herself. “I thought they made silent movies specifically for this kind of situation,” Lorelai winked at Jess. She was kind of alright when she wasn’t angry with him, and after deeper reflection, Jess knew she usually had good reason to dislike him.

“So, I’ve heard you’re a Danes now,” Lorelai tried as a conversation starter, still whispering. Jess, being his talkative self, answered with a simple ‘Yup’.

“I guess we’re gonna be family soon,” she smiled which threw Jess a little. She seemed truly happy about that development and he didn’t understand why she was so nice to him.

“Uhh… sure. You want me to call you auntie now?” Jess wisecracked. When in doubt revert to sarcasm. It had always worked for Jess.

Lorelai rolled her eyes. “No thanks. You better be nice to me,” she warned and pointed a finger at him.

“Or what? You gonna tattle on me?” Jess scoffed.

Luke had tried to convince her that Jess had changed, had grown up, and had bettered himself, and she really wanted to believe him. She truly hoped for the best for the boy, mainly for Luke’s sake but she thought it counted nonetheless. But here he was being the same old smart-ass as always. “Just watch the movie, Jess.”

After sitting in silence for a while, Lorelai noticed that Jess was staring at her, well her hand it seemed. “Something wrong?”

Jess flinched as he got caught and shifted uncomfortably. “No, just wondering when the big day’s gonna be…” He didn’t want to pry but curiosity took over.

Lorelai sighed inwardly. Why did people keep asking that? “We haven’t decided yet,” she answered shortly.

Jess looked puzzled. “I don’t think you have much say in it.”

“Why the hell not?! It’s between me and Luke and nobody else!”

Her sudden outburst confused Jess even more and he scooted slightly away from her, fearing she’d slap him or something. “Sure, sure, but uhm… don’t the doctors calculate it?”

Lorelai was completely perplexed at this statement. Why on earth would a doctor calculate her wedding day, she wondered, when it hit her. “Oooohhh… you’re not talking about the wedding!” She then started to giggle uncontrollably, which made Jess look at her as if she’d lost her mind. “I’m sorry Jess. It’s uhm, the 18th of February. Why?”

“Just checking,” he said, keeping a safe distance.

“Would you like to receive a birth alert?”

“A what?” Jess raised an eyebrow.

“A birth alert. For when I go into labor. Kirk showed me how to set up a mailing list. When the day comes, all I have to do is hit send and everyone on the list will get a notification.”

“Oh… Nah, I’m good. I don’t want to witness… it,” he said with a disgusted expression.

Lorelai laughed at the young man’s discomfort. He clearly was a Danes when it came to those kinds of topics. “It’s just a message that your cousin is on the way. Nothing more.”

“Okay. Sign me up.” Lorelai smiled at Jess benignly and nodded. They hadn’t realized that the movie had finished in the meantime and they sat on the sofa in almost complete darkness. Jess took his backpack and went over to his ‘old’ bed. ‘Maybe he did grow up a little’, Lorelai thought and went to bed as well.

\---

Lorelai woke in the middle of the night to a pain that was angst-inducingly familiar. She rubbed her abdomen where she had felt the stinging and tried to relax. 14 weeks pregnant was still within the time frame where a miscarriage was likely to happen, and Lorelai’s heart started racing. By the time another contraction hit her she was already that freaked out that she didn’t hesitate another second. “No, no, no! Not now! Luke! Help! Hospital!” she shouted and grabbed her sneakers and pulled a pullover over her shoulders. When she stumbled through the dark to get the car keys from the kitchen table, another hand was a tad faster and her gaze followed up the arm until she looked directly into the big brown eyes that were staring at her. “I drive,” Jess commanded and turned her shoulders towards the door. She didn’t need more encouragement as another sharp pain brought her half to her knees and she winced. Jess went pale and bellowed Luke’s name that loud, Luke’s heart missed a beat and he scrambled to his feet. “Lorelai! Car! Now!” Jess shouted with a thundering voice and grabbed Luke by the elbow urging him to move faster.

When Jess got into the driver’s seat, Lorelai was fumbling with her cell phone and groaned, neither Jess nor Luke knew that it was more out of frustration than pain, which prompted Jess to floor the pedal, shooting across the street. They got to the hospital in lightning-speed, and before Jess had even put the truck in park, Luke was out running with Lorelai towards the entrance. Jess followed close behind.

\---

**HOSPITAL – 4AM**

Lorelai was ushered into a room, changed into a hospital gown and different doctors and nurses seemed to hover over her. She had peen poked, stabbed and looked at from head to toe until her head was spinning and her body felt numb. She had been asked question after question and during it all she had lost sight of Luke and her panic rose until she collapsed on the bed right there and then.

\---

“Lorelai?” A warm hand stroked her cheek and her eyes fluttered open. The dimly lit room had stopped spinning, but she had hoped it was all a bad dream and the hospital wasn’t real. Luke sat on a chair next to her holding her right hand with his left while caressing her cheek with the other hand and tucking some hair behind her ear.

“Where are the doctors? What happened?” She didn’t really want to hear the answer in case there were bad news.

“They’ll be back. They examined you and made some tests and we just have to wait for a short while,” Luke tried to sound normal, but he was as panicked as Lorelai and hospitals made him feel uneasy anyways.

Lorelai saw the fear in his eyes and guilt washed over her. “This is all my fault. I did this wrong. I did this all wrong. How could I have let this happen? How did I not see it coming? How didn't I step in and do something, and… why can't I fix these things?”

“Hey,” Luke tried to comfort her and started playing with her hair, but tears rolled down her face and through sobs, Lorelai chocked “I'm a bad mother!”

“You're not a bad mother. This is not your fault and everything's gonna be okay.” Luke promised and kissed her forehead. They were interrupted by a stern voice.

“Miss Gilmore,” the doctor stepped into the room, looking at some papers in her hands.

“Dr. Santiago! What are you doing here?” Lorelai asked surprised but happy to see a familiar face. She quickly dried her eyes and hoped she didn’t look too disheveled. Luke held on to Lorelai’s hand but dropped his head staring at the ground. He tried not to think of the worst but couldn’t help himself. They had sent their personal doctor to deliver the bad news, he was sure of it.

“I work here,” the doctor said with a no-bullshit tone and flipped through the pages some more. “How are you feeling?” she then asked and looked up.

“Aren’t you supposed to tell me?” Lorelai laughed nervously. She was scared as well but tried not to show it. Dr. Santiago lowered her head and eyed Lorelai over the brim of her glasses. She lifted one eyebrow slowly and said dryly “You seem to be your normal self.” It was four in the morning, she had delivered three babies over the last five hours and was in no joking mood. “The contractions have stopped which is good. There was no bleeding, your uterus is looking healthy and the baby is fine,” the doctor simply stated.

Luke inhaled sharply squeezing Lorelai’s hand and Lorelai whispered a ‘Thank you’ to no one in particular. “What you experienced are called Braxton Hicks contractions,” the doctor continued. “They are a way of your body preparing for labor. Now they did happen slightly early but taking into consideration your age and stress level, I’m not worried. If this happens again, I want you to observe your pain. These fake contractions only happen in the front of your abdomen while real labor pains grow in intensity and start in your lower back. In order to reduce the chances of having them again, I advise to reduce stress, work less, take a break.” Santiago shuffled her papers together and asked if they had any questions, secretly hoping she was done here for the night. Lorelai received a paper slip with her official discharge signed by Dr. Santiago and was told she could leave whenever she felt ready. Santiago left the room and was almost run over by a smaller girl.

“Mom?!” Rory rushed through the door, tears running down her face. She was in Lorelai’s arms before anybody could register who was coming.

“Are you okay? Jess called but he didn’t know any details. I had to come and see you. I am so sorry, Mom. I should have been there. I should have been the one by your side. I am…” Rory cried in her mother’s arms. Lorelai gave Luke a questionable look and mouthed Jess’ name. Luke shrugged as if he had no idea and excused himself, giving mother and daughter some time alone. He also had to go find Jess.

“I’m fine, sweets. I’m fine, baby’s fine. Just a sick joke from Juno,” Lorelai laughed, letting her tears flow freely and relaxed in her daughters embrace. “I tried calling you but your number was discontinued…”

“Oh Mom. I’m so sorry. I lost my phone,” Rory sniffled. She heard the hurt in her mother’s words. Her own mother had to be rushed to the hospital and she had no means of contacting her daughter. Rory felt immensely guilty and self-centered. She would never forgive herself for this.

“You're sorry? I'm sorry,” Lorelai said and rubbed Rory’s back, happy to have her child back in her arms.

“I was so mixed-up. I should have listened to you. I was stupid. I’ll never be stupid again!”

“Oh, boy. Time to get you back to Yale.” It might have not been the best moment to bring it up, but Lorelai didn’t care. She could blame the hospital later.

“I don’t know if it’s too late for that…” Rory admitted since school was starting in a bit over a week.

“We’ll figure it out, okay? Let’s go,” Lorelai got out of bed and grabbed her clothes to change back into.

“Love you, Mom.” Rory wrapped her arms around Lorelai’s neck.

“Oh kid, you have **no** idea.” They hugged even tighter.

\---

Luke had found Jess on a chair in the waiting area staring down at his shoes. He sat down next to his nephew and exhaled audibly, rubbing his face. It was false alarm and nothing bad had actually happened, but Luke felt worn out and tired. He was relieved that everything was okay and wonderer how many times he will be worried like that in the future. It wasn’t just him anymore. He felt responsible for all the people that were at this hospital with him at the moment and hoped he was strong enough to overcome every obstacle that may occur in the future. This was his family and he had to protect them at all costs.

Jess looked at his uncle with concern in his eyes. “You okay?”

“Yeah, I’m good. Thank you.” Luke looked directly at Jess, who just shrugged. “I didn’t do anything.”

“You drove us here. You called Rory. You stuck around. Thank you,” Luke nudged his fist against Jess’ knee. The boy nodded once and they sat in silence for a while both staring at their shoes.

Lorelai and Rory entered the room arm in arm and the men got up immediately. “Let’s go home,” Lorelai said, and they all left the hospital, making their way back to Stars Hollow.

\---

**LUKE’S DINER – STILL VERY EARLY IN THE MORNING**

“Breakfast anyone?” Luke looked around and got a general nodding from everybody. He had to open the diner in about an hour anyway although he preferred going upstairs and take a nap. While Luke disappeared in the kitchen to fire up the stove, Jess started the coffee machine and the girls took the chairs down from the tables. They sat down at the big table by the window and looked out onto the empty streets. The diner started to smell like coffee and pancakes and Rory sighed. “I can’t believe I missed this. The food, the coffee, the Hollow.”

It’s a pretty cool place, you should definitely stick around,” Lorelai smiled and nudged Rory slightly. Jess brought some coffee to the table and left again to help Luke in the kitchen.

“Ugh, I wish I could stay. I have this DAR thing at ten. Stupid tea party. I need to go home and change but it shouldn’t take too long and I promise I come back afterward.”

“Oh uhm… about home… I have to warn you. It’s a big mess at the moment. I can go over with you after breakfast. It’s Sunday so there won’t be any workers and I can give you a little tour without Tom yelling at me,” Lorelai announced enthusiastically.

“What?” Rory looked at Lorelai like she just came back from the mars mission.

“We’re refurbishing the house. Big construction site. Well mainly indoors now, the big hole is all fixed.” Lorelai didn’t quite notice how Rory gaped at her and sipped her coffee blissfully. Jess had given her a _real_ cup of Joe as usual and she had to take advantage of that before Luke saw it.

“Construction?” Rory asked still wrapping her head around the words.

“Yeah, we're making the bedroom bigger,” Lorelai finally explained and hoped Rory was not going to freak out. She hadn’t planned to let her daughter know about the moving in together like that.

“You and Luke?” Rory asked for confirmation.

“No, me and John O'Hurley. Luke doesn't know yet. I hope he takes it okay.”

Right then Luke and Jess walked over with plates full of pancakes and sat down.

“I don’t know about what? You guys are not planning anything stupid for me, are ya?” he asked and frowned at Lorelai.

“You guys are gonna live at our house?” Rory asked looking between Luke and Lorelai across the table. Luke understood what they had been talking about and a small ‘oh’ slipped out. He then stared uncomfortably at his plate, not knowing if he had to say something to the matter. Should he have asked Rory for permission?

“Yeah,” Lorelai shrugged as it was no big deal.

“Wow. That's nice,” Rory had to smile at Luke’s discomfort. “I can’t wait to see it! Now remind a little. Big hole??” Rory looked at her mother expectantly which started to tell the full story of TJ, the hole and the decision of remodeling. Luke visibly relaxing seeing that it didn’t seem to be a big issue with Rory. They ate their pancakes and talked like in the good old times. Lorelai and Rory battled over who could put more chocolate syrup on a pancake, while Jess tried to hide a smirk and poured himself a generous amount of maple syrup. Luke, on the other hand, could only shake his head at them and ate his own share of pancakes with fresh fruit and a cup of herbal tea.

A glance at his watch told Luke that he had to go shower and get changed if he didn’t want to open the diner in his sweats. He pecked Lorelai on the lips and disappeared. Jess suddenly realized that he too was still in his pajama and felt uncomfortable. He got up and took his and Luke’s plate then nodded towards the Gilmores, “Want anything else?”

“You paying?” Lorelai teased and Jess gave back, “If you wanna call it that, then sure.”

“I think we’re good, thanks,” Rory interjected. Her face clearly said ‘be nice’ to her mother. “Okay,” Jess nodded apathetically and left them alone.

“Mom?”

Lorelai knew that they had lots to discuss but she didn’t want to dive right in. She wanted to be in her happy bubble a little longer and was afraid whatever Rory was going to say next, was popping said bubble. It was inevitable anyway, Lorelai sighed and looked up.

“I’m really truly sorry, Mom. If I could travel back in time to slap myself, I would, I swear. So if you happen to know a DeLorean dealer in the vicinity, I’m happy to give them a call.”

“Rory, let’s make a deal, okay? You stop apologizing and use that energy instead to figure out what you want to do next.”

“I’ve already started a list,” Rory admitted with a soft smile. She knew that things had to change and if she wanted to go back to Yale things had to change fast.

“That’s my kid!” Lorelai grinned and walked towards the curtain.

“Where are you going?” Rory called after her, but she had already disappeared behind the drape of mysteries. Rory naturally followed. “Right, you live here now. Man, that’s weird. I have to say I am a bit jealous of that. I always wanted to live in this wonderful place where pies magically appear, and coffee never runs out. This must be heaven.”

Lorelai laughed out loud. Rory sometimes was still that little doe-eyed girl that believed in fairy tales. She pushed the door open and went into the ‘bedroom’ to change. Rory looked around the apartment and noticed several boxes full of baby things. She couldn’t help but snoop a little. Another wave of guilt hit her. She should have been on that shopping trip, choosing cute and funny outfits, mocking the ugly maternity clothes…

“That one’s your mother’s favorite,” Luke said over her shoulder looking at the tiny flannel hoodie in red and black that Rory was holding. Rory had been so absorbed, she didn’t notice Luke had walked up to her and his words scared her half to death. She spun around like she was caught red-handed doing something far worse than going through some boxes. “Jeez, Luke! Don’t sneak up on me like that. I’m not that young anymore,” she warned him and held one hand over her heart trying to calm down. With her other hand, she punched Luke playfully. “Sorry,” he chuckled and pointed back at the box. “Somewhere in there is a matching blue hat.”

“No way! That’s so cute. I can’t believe you let her get that,” Rory teased and immediately started digging for the hat.

“Yeah, well, I had Lorelai, Sookie _and_ Jackson team up against me. It’s good to have you back. I need your voice of reason on my side,” Luke smiled shyly. It was one of his rare smiles that was worth a thousand words.

Rory couldn’t help but grin widely back at him. “You got it!”

Lorelai walked out of the bathroom and grabbed her bag on the way to the door. “Ready, kid? I just need to find Paul Anka and we’re good to go.”

“You need specific tunes for a five-minute drive?” Rory scoffed thinking that her mother had gotten just slightly crazier over the last couple months.

“No, Paul Anka is actually our…” Lorelai started explaining when the big fluffy dog made himself felt by emerging from below Jess’ bed and trudging into the living area. Rory shrieked and grabbed onto Luke’s arm in a panic. She basically shoved him in front of her as a human shield, startling him in the process. “…dog,” Lorelai finished lamely, lifting a brow.

Rory peaked around Luke’s shoulder, holding his arm firmly, for protection. “You guys got a dog?!” she asked unbelievingly staring at the furry companion sitting now in between Luke and Lorelai. He didn’t seem very dangerous but better safe than sorry.

“It’s your mother’s dog,” Luke pointed out. He looked down at Rory and had to laugh at her frightened expression. “He’s the lamest dog I’ve ever seen. He’s scared of dust. Trust me,” Luke gave Rory’s arms an encouraging pat and Rory slackened he grip.

“Shame on you Luke Danes, you hurt his feelings!” Lorelai warned and covered the dog’s ears; the dog, however, sat there looking rather indifferent to the action around him. Luke rolled his eyes at her insanity.

“Come over here and put sugar on your toes. And quickly! Because first impressions are crucial and you're blowing it big time,” Lorelai told to Rory waving her over to the kitchen.

“Sugar on my toes?” Rory looked up at Luke to see if she was serious, but he had the same questionable facial expression.

“Yes, he loves sugar, so the first time you come close to him, if you've got sugar on your toes that he can lick and enjoy, you're in,” Lorelai explained factually but Luke interrupted, “Don’t listen to her, just pat the damn dog!”

“Without the sugar?” Rory got confused. She was still hiding half behind Luke but took a step towards the kitchen area.

“Forget the sugar, you’re just gonna make a mess,” Luke said dismissively.

“Not if she wets her toes first so it sticks!” Lorelai argued back. “Don't worry about the mess, just hurry!”

“We're going to have ants!” Luke said frustrated.

Rory looked between the adults and had to smile. That’s how it feels like when your parents are fighting. “You’re exhausting,” she commented with a grin and got down on one knee petting Paul Anka. “Hey, there, boy!”

Lorelai and Luke exchanged warm smiles. “Well, he's glad you're here!” Lorelai observed, meaning more than just the dog. Luke stepped over to Lorelai for a quick kiss. “Gotta go. See you later crazy lady. Bye Rory.”

\---

**THE HOUSE**

“And this is the bathroom!” Lorelai announced by swinging the door open. The room had a naked concrete floor and random tubes were sticking out the walls. “I know, I know, it doesn’t look like a bathroom, _yet_. Imagine sinks here, tub there, shower in the corner, toilet behind that door, accessible from the other room. Watcha think?”

“Wow, Mom, it’s great. Just one question: where are you gonna put all your stuff? The attic isn’t that big. I assume the other room is gonna be baby’s room, not yours to clutter up,” Rory asked, trying to look seriously concerned, but a smile was tugging at the corner of her mouth.

“Ha ha, very funny. Luke thankfully doesn’t have that many clothes, so I get most of the closet space and all his tools and sport gear goes into the garage. He repainted it and put up some sturdy shelves. He wasn’t a fan of the glitter and the pink walls. My sewing machine even got a nice table and I can work in there.”

“But you have thrown stuff out, right?” Rory persevered.

“Yes, I have. What’s with the sudden need of pulling a Mission: Organization?”

“I just want that you make space for Luke. Real space. I want him to feel at home, you know. With his own set of keys and all.”

There it was. Rory had gone through this ordeal once before. Her mother engaged, a man trying to move in, big life-changing events approaching, all hell breaks loose, and they found themselves on a road trip to Boston. Rory had no desire of repeating it. Lorelai couldn’t deny that she was a little hurt that her daughter thought this relationship was in any way comparable to the one she had with Max, but she _also_ couldn’t deny that the situation looked awfully similar from the outside.

“Rory,” she exhaled and looked her daughter in the eyes. “Luke has his own keys for quite a while now. He’s more here than I am and this,” Lorelai gestured around the house “is our way of making it his home too. You don’t have to worry, okay?”

“Good. Because if any man deserves to live in this house, it is Luke. He has fixed it all over and now is refurbishing it. It technically is more his house than ours.”

“That’s good to hear. You know… under different circumstances, I would have talked to you first about… well, everything. I want you to be comfortable.”

“Mom! You don’t have to ask me for permission. I am happy. Really happy for both of you. Now I need to go find an outfit that won’t send Grandma over the edge.

“Where’s the fun in that?” Lorelai laughed and linked arms with Rory walking her to her room. While Rory was looking through her wardrobe, Lorelai sat on the bed and noticed a box on the floor. She leaned over and hit the Bop-it with her elbow, which made a noise.

Rory turns around and frowns. “You're pulling out the Bop-it? You're already that bored of me?”

Lorelai struggled back into a sitting position holding a hat box. “No. I just accidentally hit the Bop-it while I was getting this.”

“You bought me a hat?” Rory looked surprised. The DAR tea party was kind of elegant, but it wasn’t a Kentucky Derby.

“No, it's a hat box, filled with these.” Lorelai placed the box on her lap and opened it up. She grabbed a hand full of bits of paper and held them up for Rory to see. “These are notes, written on whatever I had on hand at the time. Any time I had a topic I wanted to share with you or a random thought during that crappy time apart of ours, I jotted it down and threw it in the hat box so I wouldn't forget.”

“Really?” She had no doubt the best mother ever.

“I missed you, kid,” Lorelai smiled. Rory was back at home in her bedroom. A big weight lifted off her shoulders.

“Missed you too.” Rory returned the smile. “So, hit me with 'em!”

\---

**DAR RUSSIAN TEA PARTY – SOME TIME LATER**

Waiters were serving tea and a traditional Russian band was playing music in the center of the room. Rory had arrived early since she was awake half the night and even though she had been talking with her mother for the past couple hours she was weirdly energetic. The tea party was going very well, and she felt just a little nostalgic that this was going to be her last DAR event. At least for a while. As she was giving instructions to one of the waiters a snarky voice was pulling her back to reality.

“I need to go somewhere and have a little talk with you,” Emily demanded and almost grabbed Rory by the arm.

Rory knew that a confrontation was imminent and was glad that they were surrounded by people in whose present not even Emily Gilmore dared to raise her voice. “Later, Grandma. I'm needed out here,” Rory said coolly, moving in between tables to see what needed to be done.

“Young lady, I insist that we go somewhere and talk right now,” Emily maintained.

Rory started to get annoyed. Her grandmother had been sticking her nose in all kinds of things lately that weren’t any of her business. “Grandma, I am sorry. I can't. We'll talk later.” Rory tried to keep a smile on her face, but her tone was stern. Emily felt like she was losing the battle and complained about the first thing that came to mind; the damn music. It was too loud and sounded off-key. It was disturbing her arguments. Rory sniped back which Emily did not tolerate at all. “I'm not liking this tone of yours.”

“Well, you're forcing the tone, Grandma. I said I'll talk to you later, but right now, I'm not leaving this room,” Rory said decisively and walked off, making her way through the hall. Emily followed hard on her heels. “You're not wearing your dress.”

“I didn't have time to go get it,” Rory brushed the comment away. It wasn’t that big of a deal, was it?

“You almost missed the event.”

Emily’s insistence broke Rory’s friendly demeanor. “No. I was early for the event. What I missed was your inspection of me back at the house. That's what you're upset about.”

“My inspections, missy, are for your own good. You're new to the DAR. You don't know the proper procedure for things, the proper dress.”

“I do okay.” Rory wanted to roll her eyes but refrained from doing so.

“This isn’t a game. My reputation is on the line while you’re out gallivanting in the middle of the night. Don’t think for a second I didn’t hear you!” Emily’s voice became high-pitched and her stare sent daggers into Rory’s back.

“You're overreacting.”

“You went to see Logan, am I right? You are becoming more like your mother with every passing day.” The way Emily spit out that last sentence meant that it was the worst thing that could have ever happened.

“And you are becoming more like my mother's mother with every passing day,” Rory hissed back.

“That's it! That's it!” Emily shouted. The first few heads turned into their direction.

“What's it?”

“You're grounded.” Emily pointed with a finger.

“Grounded? What do you want to do next? Slap an ankle bracelet on me and track my every move?” Rory asked mockingly.

‘Typical Lorelai answer. Everything is a joke.’ Emily thought. “When your father gets home, we're going to talk about the house rules and be on the same page once and for all.”

“You mean my _grandfather_.”

Emily looked at the girl in front of her for a second and realized what had just happened. “You know what I meant,” she snapped clearly a little disconcerted.

“Well, I'd have to be living at the house to have house rules,” Rory sneered.

“What does that mean?” Emily was tapping in the dark.

“Excuse me.” Rory turned around and walked away in a huff, hoping her grandmother would not follow. Emily fumed at that childish behavior and called after Rory, who didn’t look back. She realized that some ladies nearby had been following their conversation and tried to put on a dignified look and left.

\---

**LUKE’S DINER – LATER THAT DAY**

Rory slumped down on a chair at the counter and buried her face in her hands leaning the elbows on the countertop.

“You want a burger or heading straight for pie?”

Rory lifted her head and looked at Luke’s worried face. A full cup of coffee had magically appeared in front of her and she had to smile. “Chilly cheese fries will do.”

“Coming right up.” Luke went into the kitchen and then delivered some coffees and cakes to other tables. Before he could disappear again Rory caught his attention.

“Hey Luke, I wanted to thank you for your care package the other day and uhm… I also want to say that I’m really sorry.” She looked directly at him and Luke saw the small girl he knew so well in front of him. He waved a hand and said, “Oh, you don’t have to apologize to me…”

“No, I do,” Rory insisted. “You’re family and I messed up and I’m really sorry about everything.”

Luke felt on the spot. He had no idea she saw him as family, and he adjusted his hat in embarrassment. “It’s okay, really,” he intended to get past this conversation, but Rory was not done. “I also want to say that I am beyond excited for you and Mom and I can’t wait to meet my brother. So, congratulations again. You’re going to make a great dad.” Rory smiled broadly and Luke blushed. He appreciated her saying all that, but it still made him extremely uncomfortable.

“Thank you,” he said sincerely and was glad when he was called to pick up an order. This somehow saved him once again from his own awkwardness. He put the fries in front of Rory, who smiled mischievously. “So, Luke, tell me. How did you propose?”

Luke’s mouth fell open and he had to collect his thoughts for a moment. “Oh, uhm… she didn’t tell you?”

“Nope, she told me about Kirk’s new hobby and other things that were going on over summer, but we haven’t gotten to the juicy parts yet.”

“Oh, okay. Well, I didn’t. Your mom proposed to me,” Luke said slowly. There wasn’t much of a story to tell and he himself had sometimes trouble understanding why it happened, he was just glad it did.

“She did?! WOW!” Rory hadn’t expected that. She was sure Luke had planned something romantic and went down on one knee. He seemed somehow to be an old-fashioned kind of romance man. It truly was different from Mr. Medina then. Her mom had made the first step. She initiated it. To Rory, these were good news. It meant that her mother wanting it this time and there wasn’t going to be another impromptu road trip. Rory couldn’t help but grin from ear to ear, while munching on her fries. Luke had excused himself to unpack some deliveries.

“You seem happy,” Jess noted and stole a fry from her plate.

“Hey, Gilmores don’t share food!” She slapped his hand away in defense.

“How was your meeting with the Mad Hatter?”

“Ugh! I’d rather talk about your book,” Rory sighed and steered to conversation away from her conflict with Emily. The thought of Jess’ book cleared away the cobwebs. “Hey, you should ask Andrew to put them in his store!”

Jess chuckled at that idea. “I don’t think Andrew likes me very much…”

“What are you talking about? When you lived here you were his second-best customer!” Rory teased and popped another fry in her mouth.

“Yeah right. He owes me,” Jess laughed. “That's what I was actually doing here last week. Went around begging independent bookstores to put it in stock. Got it in a few.”

“See! I can talk to Andrew for you if you want,” Rory offered. She was convinced that she could get Andrew to put the book on his shelves. “And I need addresses of those other stores. I have a plan,” she winked.

Her cheeky grin was intriguing. “What?”

“You know that section toward the front, the staff recommendations? I'm gonna grab a copy of your book and put it in that section, and then I'm going to write my own little recommendation on a card and attach it so people see it and buy it.” Rory had a foolproof plan and was ready to put it into action.

Jess just laughed at her eagerness. “Read it first. That way you can discourage people from buying it.”

“No way! I know it's good. Jess, you've got such a great brain. I knew that if you could just sit down and stop shaking it around, you could do something like this. I knew it. I knew it.”

“I know you did.” Jess suddenly got flustered. “I uh… I actually wanted to tell you that I couldn't have done it without you.” His cheeks burned and he stared at the floor.

Rory was taken by surprise and looked down at her plate. “Thanks,” she mumbled not meeting his eyes.

Jess cleared his throat and combed his hair with his fingers. “So, what's going on with you?”

Rory looked back at him with surprise. “Uh, what do you mean?”

“You know what I mean. Living at your grandparents' place, being in the DAR, no Yale...why did you drop out of Yale?” he asked curiously. Although they had talked last night and then again quickly during the night, they hadn’t had time to hold a full conversation and Jess only knew what Luke had told him.

Jess somehow had the ability to undo Rory. She knew she could tell him anything and that he’d listen and give an honest opinion. During their relationship, she was usually the one that shared her side while he never told her what was going on with him. This time was different. He had come to her, told about himself, shared his life willingly. She couldn’t help but tell him everything that had happened over the last months.

He listened and reacted, shrugged, laughed, nodded, but didn’t interrupt. When she finished he took a deep breath and said, “Doesn’t sound much like you.”

“I know. And I hate it,” Rory determined and looked upset. “I have to do something. You wrote a book. I could write a book…”

Jess knew exactly what she should do and didn’t understand why neither Lorelai nor her grandparents pushed her harder. He didn’t want to just say it though. She had to figure it out on her own. “Sure, or you write articles,” he shrugged as if it was no big deal.

“What?” Rory’s thoughts were back on the roller coaster that she momentarily called her life and his words brought her car to a shrieking halt.

“You’re good at writing articles.”

His statement was so simple yet meant so much. That’s what everyone in her family said, what teachers usually said at Chilton, even at Yale. Then she narrowed her eyes. “How would you know?”

“I know you. You always have a point of view. You have something to say. So, say it. Write it.” It almost sounded like a challenge.

“But where?” It wasn’t really a question, more a cry for help.

“Anywhere. Doesn’t matter. Start with what you know.”

What she knew was school. Going to school had been her life. “Yale?” she asked rhetorically. He had to be joking right?

“Yes, Yale. Or that other place that told you you’re not good enough. Proof ‘em wrong.” There was again that challenge and Jess knew she couldn’t refuse it.

Rory’s brain was buzzing. Going back there was the most logical step, but not easy. “It’s too late…” Even in her own ears, she could hear the lame excuse.

Jess leaned closer to her and slammed his fist on the table. “To hell with that!” Rory jerked her head up and looked directly into Jess determined eyes. She emerged from her self-pity. ‘I am good at writing. I have something to say. Proof _him_ wrong. To hell with Mitchum Huntzberger!’ Rory stared at Jess with her mouth agape “I have to make some calls,” she stuttered and rushed out the diner.

“You better Rory Gilmore!” Jess cheered after her and threw one fist in the air.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Dear readers,  
> Thank you for being here. I hope you enjoyed this chapter.  
> To me Jess had always been the main factor of Rory going back to Yale and I wanted to give him more credit for that. I also liked speeding up the story and pushing some events around.  
> Let me know what you think!  
> Stay happy and healthy,  
> Atlas.


	7. Anger Management

**MID-SEPTEMBER 2005**

Luke stood in Lorelai’s kitchen washing his right arm that was covered in white primer paint up to his elbow with some more paint on his cheek, jaw and down his neck. His flannel shirt was soaking in soap water in a bucket on the table while he furiously scrubbed his arm until it was red.

The day had started so well; Tom had called and informed Luke that the sinks and the bathtub had arrived, and he went over to the house to see if they were the right ones before Tom would install them. He was excited to see the bathroom finally coming together and constructions seemed to be coming to an end.

Upon his arrival, Luke had noticed several big boxes on the porch next to the door and wondered what Lorelai had ordered this time. He moved them into the living room and was surprised by Kirk. “Oh, Luke, there you are! I am here to show you this new line of shower curtains. Since I know you are remodeling the bathroom, I thought you might want to be my first customer,” Kirk beamed and opened the box he was holding. He conjured some strangely patterned fabric out of the box and threw it over his shoulders like a toga. It had huge Picasso-esque frogs, ducks and fishes on it and was either colored in by a toddler or someone on acid. Since they were going to have a shower cubicle with sliding doors and the bathtub didn’t need a curtain, Luke had no interest in what Kirk had to show him but the eager salesman Kirk was, he followed Luke around the house anyway, pulling one curtain after the other out of the box.

When Luke had enough, he stopped short and wanted to threaten Kirk to either get out voluntarily or be thrown out the front door rolled up in those curtains. The words hadn’t even left his lips but were already coming half true. The sudden halt of Luke had surprised Kirk and he got tangled up in the seventh curtain he was pulling out. All the fabric he was holding loosely had slung around him like a straitjacket and he very cartoon like fell over like a wrapped-up mummy. He fell straight into Luke’s arms who was caught off guard and stumbled backwards into the ladder that was standing in the middle of the empty bedroom. The weight of the two men brought the ladder including Pedro the painter down. Pedro had been priming the walls all morning and had moved on to the ceiling. He tried to jump off the ladder before being squished under it, Luke and Kirk. Within his sudden departure of said ladder he dropped the paint canister which emptied its whole content over Luke’s right shoulder before hitting the floor and splattering the remaining paint primer all over the floor. While Pedro landed almost safely on the wet floor, Luke wasn’t so lucky. He bumped his head heavily on the ladder and Kirk landed on top of him, jamming one elbow deep into Luke’s gut, pressing all air out of him.

Luke wanted to bellow at Kirk, but no sound left his mouth. Instead he was yapping for air and started coughing vigorously. Tom who had been waiting for Luke in the adjoining bathroom came to see what the commotion was all about. He helped Pedro pull Kirk off Luke’s chest and away from the clenched fists of the diner man.

“Luke… I’m… I’m so sorry,” Kirk stammered, but seeing Luke’s red eyes of fury he collected his goods and hurried out the house.

Luke spent the next half hour helping Pedro clean up the floor and scolded the painter for not having a tarp spread out on the new dark hardwood floor. At least the sinks and bathtub were fine, and Tom got his men to install them promptly.

Luke hadn’t planned on spending that much time at the house and he also had no clothes there at the moment to change. So, he went down to the kitchen filled a bucket with detergent and water and put the shirt in it, hoping he’d get the white paint out of it. He then proceeded to wash his face and arm with a cloth at the kitchen sink. The primer had dried and was sticking in the hair of his arm, being horrible to wash off even with a lot of rubbing. When he finally dried himself with a soft towel and felt clean again the phone rang. He usually let it go to voicemail and if the caller left a message, he’d write it down and hand the note to Lorelai in the evening. People only left messages when they didn’t have Lorelai’s cell phone number, which meant that he only had to play messenger boy twice over the last couple of months. The answering machine clicked on and Luke froze mid-wiping his neck dry.

“Hey, Lor, haven't said that in a while,” the voice chuckled, and Luke clenched his fists around the towel. “Anyway, hope you're good. Hope Rory is good. I wanted to talk to you. Nothing terrifying. I think I have good news. In fact, I know I have good news. Anyhow, I'm hoping you'll call me back and maybe we could arrange a date and discuss it in person. No trick, I promise. It’s an absolute one hundred percent positive thing for you and Rory. So, call me. Bye.”

Luke had recognized Christopher’s voice immediately and he initially wanted to grab the recorder and throw it against a wall, but Lorelai wouldn’t appreciate that, and it would lead to him having to explain why he smashed her recorder. The next best thing would be to just stomp down on the cassette and destroy any evidence of a call. He could put in a new one and Lorelai would never know there was a message in the first place. Except that Christopher would probably call again and again making Lorelai realize that she had missed a first call and it would all come back to Luke. ‘Damn it!’ he thought and knew he had only one option: tell Lorelai that Chris had called and wanted to have a _date_. This day really didn’t get any better and Luke groaned. He didn’t want to write down a note, so he just grabbed the cassette, shoved it violently into his jeans pocket and left.

\---

Back at the diner, Luke pushed the door open and his jaw dropped. “What the…” he muttered and stared at a humungous stone urn standing in the middle of his diner. Some kids were climbing on it and everybody acted like it was the most normal thing ever. Luke rubbed his eyes to make sure he wasn’t hallucinating and walked around it, touching the stone carefully. “Caesar!” he shouted and stormed into the kitchen. “What is that thing doing in my diner?!”

“Oh, hey boss. It got delivered about an hour ago. I didn’t know where you wanted it and the delivery guys refused to help move it anywhere else, so I thought I better wait for your orders,” Caesar explained and saw in his boss’ eyes that he somehow made a mistake.

“What? This isn’t mine. I didn’t order that,” Luke snapped and rubbed his forehead in confusion.

“Sorry, boss. It was addressed to Lorelai… I thought maybe it was for your garden,” Caesar said apologetically, and kneaded his apron nervously.

“No, no, no,” Luke whimpered and felt a headache coming on. “Just help me move it to the side,” he sighed, and Caesar followed him at once. They had to shoo the kids away, which they didn’t appreciate and one of them started crying. Luke massaged his temples in order to calm himself down. He wasn’t the kind of person that shouted at kids, but he did want to shout at the mother and throw them out of the diner. At least the damn urn was that heavy that he could release his anger through physical activity. Or so he thought.

Sometime later his mood hadn’t improved and after he had burned the third burger in a row, Caesar had kicked him out of the kitchen when Sookie waltzed into the diner and shouted his name about a gazillion times in between opening the door and walking over to the counter.

Luke’s vein on his forehead immediately started popping up again. “Sookie, I'm working,” he gnarled at the bubbly woman, who was used to his grumpy self and didn’t take much notice of his particular bad mood at the moment.

“I know. I just came by to show you this,” she beamed, and shoved some kind of figurine into his face.

“What's that?” Luke asked and hoped it wasn’t another ridiculous toy. Since they had announced the pregnancy, several townspeople had tried to “gift” them their old used toys, that they had found most likely in their Dumpster. Luke couldn’t make up his mind if they either though he and Lorelai were a charity case or if they really thought they were being generous.

“This is a vintage cake-topper,” Sookie explained proudly. “Porcelain bisque, hand-painted, I think the 1940s. Shoulder pads on the shoulders. I found it at a flea market this morning. It's perfect.”

“Perfect for what?” Luke asked disinterested, wiping the counter down.

“For your and Lorelai's wedding cake,” Sookie replied as if it were obvious.

“Oh, well, that's nice,” Luke sighed halfheartedly, and resumed working.

“Nice? Nice? It's not nice, it's fate. Look,” she held the cake-topper, so the bride and groom’s rear ends were facing Luke. “Perhaps this looks familiar. His butt. It's your butt,” she pointed to the porcelain man and repeated eagerly, “It's your butt, Luke. It's your butt.”

“Sookie, stop screaming, "It's your butt". People are eating,” Luke became exasperated and went to pick up plates from the kitchen window. Sookie followed him around the diner while he delivered the plates and spoke with a dreamy voice. “Oh, when I found this topper, your whole cake came to me, like in a vision. White and sparkly with beautiful daisies made of fondant on the top. So, now that I know the cake, all you have to do is set the date. When is the date?”

Luke stopped abruptly and turned towards Sookie who bumped into him and grinned widely waiting for a response. What was it with people following him closely around all the time? Luke worked his jaw and looked down at the little woman. Lorelai and he hadn’t talked about the wedding in weeks, maybe even months. “I don’t know,” he eventually answered and walked back behind the counter.

“What do you mean, you don't know? Rory’s back for almost a month now, so get a move on,” Sookie ordered. She had been collecting magazine articles and newspaper clippings about wedding ideas for months and was eager to start the planning. Last time she had brought up the topic Lorelai hadn’t reacted all too positive and Sookie tried to keep her distance, so working on Luke was the next best option.

“Lorelai’s the one that wanted to wait so she’s the one that has to give the green light,” Luke stated simply.

“Oh, come on Luke, grow a pair and ask the woman to set a date,” Sookie scoffed, and Luke folded his arms in defense. “How’s this any of your business?”

“You’re a chicken, Luke. And a slow one too. You’d be the first one to land in my pan,” Sookie said it like a threat but only confused Luke further. “She already said yes, how much more confirmation do you need?”

Luke rolled his eyes and sneered, “Technically, **I** said yes.”

“With the speed you two are moving things along, don’t complain if she needs a walker to get down the aisle.” Sookie turned around, knowing she wouldn’t get anywhere with this old grump and walked out the door.

Luke dropped his head to his chest and thanked the Lord, that he was left alone. He wanted to get married. He really did. But Luke didn’t want to push Lorelai, because, well, she wasn’t the kind of person that liked being pushed. She was usually the one doing the pushing. But Sookie made a point; Lorelai had asked, and he had said yes, AND Rory was back. Maybe it _was_ time to make a move… but why rush it? Sookie was wrong, they weren’t moving slow. They were moving fast, warp drive even. Together, without a break, for almost one and a half years, engaged, with a baby on the way… How much faster could they _be_ moving?

“Lucas, I need to talk to you,” Taylor yelled over the counter and pointed an accusing finger. “That thing is blocking my window!” The older man pointed at the stone monster in front of the window that separated the diner from the Soda Shoppe.

Luke hadn’t noticed that Taylor had emerged and cursed inwardly. So, today was the day everyone had a go at him. What did he do to deserve that? He lifted his head just enough to look into Taylor’s eyes. “I don’t give a damn, if it is blocking your window Taylor, in fact, the more that window’s blocked the better,” he rasped through gritted teeth.

“Well, I knew you’d refuse to remove _it_ , so I had to take matters into my own hands.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?” Luke scowled.

“Consider yourself served,” Taylor triumphed and slammed a document on the counter. Luke picked it up and quickly scanned the paper. “You can’t be serious!”

“I’m always serious.” Taylor turned on his heels to leave. At that moment Lorelai entered the diner and Taylor brushed past her with his head held high.

“Get back here Taylor!” Luke shouted, but Taylor ignored him. Luke leaned against the back counter and took the hat from his head. He closed his eyes and rubbed with the free hand over his face and through his hair. He didn’t notice that Lorelai took a seat opposite him. She looked him up and down and immediately noticed that he wasn’t wearing a flannel shirt and wondered what happened with Taylor and if it was related to his change of wardrobe or better the lack thereof. “Hey,” she said to get his attention and Luke stopped the rubbing immediately. “Hi,” he reacted, put the hat back where it belonged and placed a mug in front of her.

“Kiss?” she asked and eyed him with worry. He seemed madder than usual, the kind of mad that could last for days and she didn’t like that. Luke shook his head slowly, grabbed the coffee pot and started filling her cup. “I'm too mad.”

Lorelai’s eyes widened at that. She looked at Luke, then her mug and back at Luke. “Luke?” He looked up and sighed, “What?”

“What’s going on?”

“Nothing,” Luke sighed again. Too much had happened in one day and he still tried to catch up with the events.

“Nothing? So, nothing’s gotten you that riled up that you gave me coffee voluntarily?” Lorelai asked skeptically.

“Huh? Aw geez. Sorry.” He took the mug away and nodded towards the giant urn. “Something came for you this morning, good old Caesar signed for it.”

Lorelai turned her head and gasped. How did she not see that when coming in? “Oh my God!”

“Now, normally I have a blanket policy against the diner accepting humungous five-foot urns addressed to other people, but Caesar, he apparently didn’t know about the policy.”

“Oh, she is good,” Lorelai shook her head. “Covering all the bases. Brilliant! Picking away at the people closest to me.”

Luke looked annoyed and confused. “Who?”

“Emily Gilmore!” Lorelai huffed.

“You’re kidding!”

Lorelai shook her head angrily, “For days she’s been emptying her house, sending me everything she doesn’t need anymore, trying to smoke me out of my foxhole.”

“That explains the insane amount of boxes at the house,” Luke shrugged. At least one mystery solved. “Well, call her and tell her to knock it off!”

“Oh, no! That’s exactly what she wants!” Lorelai shrieked. “I poke my head out of the foxhole, it gets blown off! Then I have no head, Luke! Wait – you’ve been at the house?” She asked surprised and immediately changed her tone.

“Yes, the sinks came today, and I went to check them out like you’ve told me to. Big mistake.”

“Oh, no. What happened? They delivered the wrong ones?” Lorelai remembered the sink fiasco with Sookie at the Inn well even though it was more than two years ago, and prayed Luke hadn’t sent them back to Kuala Lumpur or wherever the heck they were made.

“Sinks are fine, but apparently some people were just born to make my life living hell!” Luke’s cheeks had started getting flushed and Lorelai looked puzzled. “I don’t understand…” Lorelai raised her brows questioningly.

“Kirk happened. Who else?! He knocked Pedro over, almost killed me and ruined our expensive wooden floor. And when I fixed all that and came back here a giant urn was sitting in my restaurant!”

Lorelai tilted her head and gave the monstrosity another look. “Actually, it’s more of a vase.”

“I don’t care what it is! The thing weighs three hundred pounds. Caesar said it took four guys to bring it in,” Luke ranted and held up a letter, “And now, I am in violation of ordinance twenty-two B.”

Luke’s story didn’t make much sense to her and she usually was good at keeping up with his rants. “What is ordinance twenty-two B?”

“Kids playing on the urn requires a jungle gym license! As stated in ordinance twenty-two B, a fine has already been levied”

“Ah, Taylor?” Lorelai guessed, as Luke’s face turned a darker shade of red. “Yes, Taylor. Of course, Taylor! But that’s not all of it. Apparently today is Luke Danes hunting season,” he spat and threw the letter onto the back counter. Now he spoke in riddles and Lorelai was completely lost in the conversation. “Meaning?” she asked carefully.

Luke pointed at his chest and said, “I’m the punching bag of the day. Wanna take a swing at me?” He lifted one fist like he was going to sucker punch himself then pointed with the thumb over his shoulder. “Get in line.”

“Someone punched you?!” Lorelai got visibly confused.

“No, well, the step ladder hit me in the head, but I meant Kirk, Taylor, your mother, Sookie, Chris…” Luke counted on his fingers.

“Chris? What Chris? One of Tom’s guys?” Slight panic rose in her at the mention of that name and she secretly prayed it wasn’t who she thought it was.

“No, _your_ Chris,” Luke glowered and stared at the floor.

Lorelai’s eyebrows shot up and a thousand questions immediately shot through her head. “Oh… What? How? When?” were the ones she could vocalize.

“He called. Left a cryptic message but I’m not dumb. He obviously wants you back.” Luke took the tape out of his pocket and shoved it into Lorelai’s hand. She looked at it and didn’t know what to make of it. “What did he say?” Lorelai asked but Luke ignored her questions. He was on a roll, “And then Sookie came in here and yelled at me. That I’m some kind of wuss with zero follow-through!”

Lorelai had always thought she was talking fast but the way Luke was jumping from one topic to another had her head spinning and the last bit didn’t sound like Sookie at all. “Sookie said that? Why?” Lorelai tried asking again to make at least a little sense out of the rambling man in front of her.

“Because you said we have to wait and I agreed, but I’ve done my waiting!” Luke now shouted and the whole diner was their audience.

“Twelve years of it in Azkaban?” Lorelai chuckled but regretted opening her mouth immediately as Luke shot daggers at her. “I have no energy for this,” he huffed and stomped into the storage room.

Lorelai wanted to go after him directly, but she had to take a second to organize her thoughts. Luke was mad because her mother had sent him a vase and Taylor gave him a fine. Something happened with Kirk at the house, Sookie insulted him and Chris was being Chris. Lorelai needed a lot more information to complete that puzzle and followed Luke into the storage room.

He was angrily reorganizing the shelves although they were perfectly stacked the way they were. “Luke, talk to me. Or are you mad at me too for some reason you haven’t disclosed yet?”

“I’m not mad at you, I’m…” Luke gestured with his hands but couldn’t find the right words.

“What? Tell me,” she prompted him.

Luke took one big stride to stand directly in front of her. He placed both hands on her upper arms and rubbed his thumbs up and down. Lorelai almost lost her balance under his intense gaze and it was a good thing he was holding her up. “I want to marry you. I’m ready. I want to set a date and stop waiting.”

“Oh,” she breathed in surprise. She couldn’t say more anyway because Luke’s lips crashed against hers and he kissed her eagerly. Lorelai responded with mutual willingness and pusher her whole body up against him. Her hands slowly wandered up his muscular arms towards his neck. She liked to hold onto his shirt’s collar to draw him even closer, but all her fingers could reach was the neckline of the t-shirt. Luke had moved on to kiss the crook of her neck and Lorelai had a moment to breathe. “Luke, where’s your shirt?”

Luke looked into her concerned eyes and had to grin. She liked mocking his wardrobe but whenever he wasn’t dressed his usual way she’d complain and demand explanations. Luke planted a soft kiss on her nose and stepped out of their close embrace. He adjusted his hat and chuckled, “It’s in a bucket.” He took her hand and led her to some sturdy looking crates. “Come, sit. I tell you the whole story.”

For the next half hour, Luke was recounting his day without a break, which still blew Lorelai’s mind. She made the occasional comment or follow up question, but Luke could deliver a speech if he wanted to. 

By the time he finished, Lorelai understood his frustrations and sighed sympathetically, “Do your days have more than 24 hours?”

Luke laughed out loud, “I think interactions involving Kirk or Taylor slow down time, so the suffering feels longer.”

“I know other interactions that are said to have the power to even stop time,” Lorelai giggled and did a funny double eyebrow raise.

“Ah. Dirty,” Luke smirked and got up. “So, will you call your mother? Tell her about the wedding, the baby, Rory, and that we have no need for… anything?”

“I just gave you a dirty and you bring up my mother?” Lorelai shook her head disapprovingly. “Also how come all your problems are linked to me and now I have to solve them?”

“Not all of them. You didn’t send Kirk to harass me, did you? But you are an excellent problem solver. That’s why I want to marry you.”

Lorelai stood up and slapped his shoulder. “Ha-ha. And what do you bring to the marriage?”

“I have other talents,” Luke said humbly but the smirk gave him away.

“Oh, really? Do I get a demonstration?” Lorelai slung her arms around Luke’s neck and pecked him on the lips when the storage room door opened, and Caesar cleared his throat. “Ahem. Sorry to interrupt, boss. I am leaving. Lane has started her shift and uhm… You’re needed in the kitchen.” The young man had stared at the floor the entire time he spoke and left with burning cheeks.

“Poor Caesar, I better go before we scar him for life,” Lorelai smiled and stepped out of the room. She had to go and take Paul Anka for a walk anyway. Luke pinched her right butt cheek and nodded towards Stonehenge, “Don’t forget your _vase_ on your way out.”

\---

**NEW HAVEN – FRIDAY 16 th SEPTEMBER – EVENING**

Rory had some busy weeks behind her, and her life finally started to feel normal again. She had managed to convince several teachers to let her take the classes she wanted, bribed even one of the teachers with some of Luke’s Danishes and was very happy that everything was settled at Yale. She even was back on the writing staff for the Yale Daily News and got a part-time intern position at the Stamford Eagle Gazette.

After her first weekend back in Stars Hollow, she had moved all her things out of her grandparents’ house with the help of Logan, Colin, and Finn. Apparently, Richard had caught the two friends with some boxes and had made a scene, while Rory and Logan had already left.  

The bigger problem was the housing situation at Yale. The dorms were full and almost all apartments had found new flatmates over summer. Rory had talked to Paris in case she heard about an opening somewhere, but so far nothing. She had tried to commute from Stars Hollow but ended up most nights sleeping on Paris’ couch or staying over at Logan’s.

After another stressful day of juggling classes, work, and community service, she had plans to meet Logan for dinner in New Heaven. Logan was already occupying a booth at the steak house and had a drink in front of him. Rory slumped down on the bench opposite him and groaned. “Long day?” Logan asked and pushed his drink across the table, but Rory declined. “Long week!” she moaned. “I only got half the things done, which means another weekend of cramming, which means another weekend I can’t see Mom.”

“Oh, c’mon Ace, take a break. You work your ass off. Relax, have a drink,” Logan waved a waitress over and orders another drink and three different appetizers. “What’s on your to-do list?”

Rory laid her head on the tabletop and mumbled, “Find a place to stay, write an article, study for Professor Hendrick’s class and uh… not forget to eat.”

“Yeah right, like that’s gonna happen!” Logan laughed and right then the waitress came over with their food. “So apart from the ordinary, all you need is a place to stay, right?” he asked and sipped his drink.

“Right-a-mundo,” Rory sighed and picked at the nachos.

“Well… you can move in with me,” he offered and snapped Rory out of her misery.

“What?” she asked even though she had understood perfectly.

“Move in with me. Commuting forth and back between here and Stars is clearly not working for you and I don’t like it when you stay over at Paris’ dump.”

“Logan, that's really sweet, but I can't move in with you. I can’t _afford_ to move in with you.”

“Why not? You're here half the time anyway. You've already got two dresser drawers, and right now, for a limited time, I'll throw in free rent, three more drawers and a set of Ginsu knives,” Logan bargained with his big brown puppy eyes.

“Really?” Rory asked and raised an eyebrow.

Logan realized she was close to cave and smirked, “No. I have no idea where to get Ginsu knives.”

Rory took another nacho chip and carefully rolled up the strings of cheese dripping from the loaded chip. “It's kind of a big step, isn't it?” she asked, focusing on the food alone.

Logan leaned back in the leather booth and shrugged nonchalantly, “You need a place, I got the space. Don't you think it'll be fun?”

Rory finally broke eye contact with the chips and questioned dubiously, “Fun?”

“Come on, Ace. You know what I mean. What do you say?”

“Well…” Rory thought about her situation and how much she liked to stay with him, wake up next to him, live with him. “I might need just one more drawer. I can put my socks in a shoebox under the bed,” she added shily.

Logan leaned forward to catch her eye. “Is that a yes?”

Then it was Rory’s turn to smile broadly, “I guess that’s a yes.”

“Good. And no shoeboxes. You’re getting those drawers.”

Rory wanted to discuss further important details, like splitting rent and grocery costs, when her phone rang. She pulled it out of her handbag and checked the display. She didn’t recognize the number and it was already late on Friday evening. She pressed the green phone button and asked carefully, “Hello?”

“Hey kiddo, how you doin’?” said a chipper voice on the other side and Rory’s jaw dropped. “Uh… Dad?”

“Yeah, who else calls you kiddo in a manly voice?” Christopher laughed and Rory had to collect herself for a moment. “Uhh, no… no one. I’m just surprised. How did you get this number?”

“Well, I’ve tried getting in touch with you and your mom for some time now, but nobody seems to pick the phone at your house and your cell phone number was discontinued so I got worried and called your grandparents. Emily refused to give me Lorelai’s cell number and very reluctantly gave me yours after some comments about manners. So, what’s going on?”

“Nothing,” Rory said quickly. She had no desire of involving her father in the Gilmore family drama. “Everything’s fine. Why are you calling?”

“I’d like to see you and your mom. I have good news and I thought we could meet, and I tell you all about it.”

“Why can’t you tell me now?” Rory asked, confused by his secrecy.

“It’s more fun in person, trust me. Plus, I haven’t seen you guys in a while. I miss you.” Although Chris sounded sincere, Rory’s guard went up instantly and her voice took a more serious tone, “I don’t think that’s a good idea.”

Chris was surprised to hear her speak that way. “What do you mean?”

“Dad,” Rory warned. She knew, he knew exactly what she was referring to.

“Come on Rory, she can’t still be mad about that. I apologized right away…”

Obviously, her father only thought about Lorelai and her feelings. If Rory was maybe mad too wasn’t even an option to him. “Remember when I warned you?” she asked with a strained voice. “I told you to stay away from Mom and yet again you managed to mess everything up. I have no problem meeting you, Dad, but if it isn’t one hundred percent necessary to involve Mom, I prefer to keep her out of it.” Rory knew that Lorelai didn’t need protection and that things with Luke were settled but she didn’t trust her father and had no interest in giving him a free opportunity to meddle.

“It concerns her too, Rory,” Chris tried to get her to change her mind, but Rory had made a decision about how to handle her parents' complicated past a long time ago. “Then I’ll pass on the message,” she replied decidedly.

She heard Chris sigh on the other end of the phone. “Okay. Fine. Just you and me. When are you free?”

Rory arranged a date with Christopher for the next day, and they said their goodbyes. Logan had followed the conversation with interest. He had only met Rory’s parents that unfortunate time, when he was half undressed and about to have sex with their daughter. Not a great first impression… He hoped he one day had the chance to redeem himself but hearing Rory talk to her father like that didn’t indicate that the relationship between them was completely salvaged since then, so he didn’t ask what the phone call was all about.

They finished their meal quite quickly and headed back to Logan’s place, which was now _their_ place and while Logan took a shower Rory thought it was a good moment to call her mother.

\---

Lorelai sat on Luke’s couch and watched TV while Luke was busy at the kitchen table with paperwork for the diner. The cell phone rang and upon seeing the caller ID she flipped it happily open. “Hey, kid, what's going on?” she said melodiously, still jazzed about the return of her daughter.

Rory noticed Lorelai’s happiness and hoped that the topics she was about to address weren’t dampening the mood. “Hey Mom, listen, I have some news, two pieces of news, actually. One is good, and one is, let's say, interesting.”

“Oh, intrigue,” Lorelai said playing along but tensed up a little.

Rory thought it best to just rip the band-aid off and get it over with. “Well, first, I found a place to stay.”

“Really? How did that happen? I thought there were absolutely no apartments for rent anywhere near campus. Tell me you’re not moving in with Paris into the house of doom!”

“No, no, nothing like that,” Rory quickly resolved and chewed her lip before adding slowly, “I’m actually moving in with Logan.”

Lorelai had to swallow hard. “Wow, big news!” she tried faking enthusiasm, but Rory picked up on it up anyway. “Yeah. He asked me tonight over dinner and I said yes.”

“Wow,” Lorelai repeated, still digesting the news. “So… better neighborhood than Paris?”

“Yes, definitely. He lives in the Taft building, right off campus,” Rory explained and expected another comment, but the phone stayed silent. “So, what do you think of me moving in with Logan?” she asked carefully, and Lorelai snorted, “I'm sorry, do you remember what happened the last time I piped in with my opinions on your life choices?”

“Mom, come on.”

“You don't want to make sure the pool house is clean first?”

“Mom!” Rory shrieked at her mother’s dark humor.

“Okay, well, moving in, that's pretty big,” Lorelai observed. “I mean, I don't know. I've never lived with a guy. There's that whole thing about the cow and the milk's free. I guess I would hate to think that you really moved in with him because there was a housing shortage, because it's a big step.”

“I know. I love him,” Rory whispered coyly.

Lorelai noticed Rory’s reservation and had to smile. “Well, I want you to be happy.”

“I am happy, really happy.”

“Okay, then. Congratulations.”

“Thanks.”

“You're gonna have to tell me how it is living with a guy before I let Luke move in. If it's too creepy, he may have to stay with Babette - Ow!” Luke who had been sitting at the kitchen table in silence had eavesdropped on their conversation and at Lorelai’s last remark he had picked up an apple from the fruit bowl and thrown it across the room at Lorelai’s shoulder. It bounced off of her and fell onto the couch.

“What was that?” Rory asked hearing her mother’s wince.

“Luke is throwing food at me!” Lorelai cried and tried to glare at Luke but had to giggle at his playfulness and cocky smile.

“Well if he’s mistreating you, he better stays in his man cave!” Rory laughed, imagining their banter all too well.

Lorelai picked up the apple and bit in it, munching with pleasure while talking. “I’m glad you’ve got my back. Oh, hey were those the interesting news or the good news?”

“What?” Rory’s thoughts had wandered to her mother and Luke living together and it gave her a warm feeling. Even though she wasn’t home much anymore, she knew Lorelai wasn’t alone and it gave her some sense of peace.

“You said you had two pieces of news…” Lorelai helped along.

“Oh right, those were the good news. At least for me anyway. The other things is uhm… Dad called,” Rory grimaced. She had no idea what kind of reaction to expect.

“Oh…” Lorelai exhaled. She should have expected this.

“You don’t sound surprised. Does this mean that you have received his messages and decided not to call him back?”

Lorelai took another bite from the apple and looked at Luke. He was punching numbers into the calculator and sipped tea in between writing down the results of his monthly revenue. He looked so… beautiful, and Lorelai’s heart swelled with love. After she had listened to Chris’ message, Luke had assured her that as long as he knew about her meeting beforehand, he was fine, but Lorelai knew him better than that. Luke was right about her always forgiving Chris. She mainly blamed her mother for what happened at the vow renewal, even though Chris had shown an incredible lack of character that night. He was her oldest friend and held a special place in her heart, but Luke was more important. She didn’t want to risk anything. “It’s uh… it’s complicated…”

“No, I get it. He messed up big time and you don’t want to see him. I understand.”

“It’s not that. I want to have a good relationship with him. A no-drama relationship. For your sake _and_ my own. But that is the thing he can’t give me. As long as I know that he’s not over me, we can’t have that. I thought we could but… you saw what happened.”

“Yeah… You don’t mind me meeting Dad, though, right?” Rory asked to make sure.

“Oh, no, of course not. Your relationship with him has nothing to do with me. I just like to be informed…” Lorelai admitted.

“Don’t worry, I’ll tell you what he wants. I’ll even reenact it for you.”

Lorelai had a better idea though, “Or I come along and sit a few tables away wearing a big hat, sunglasses, and a trench coat, hiding behind the menu.”

Rory laughed out loud, “Or we buy those glasses with the camera in them and I wear a mic. You can watch our meeting from the surveillance van.”

Lorelai nodded approvingly. “But where do we get the van from?”

“Uhm… we can take the one from the Dragonfly?”

“Too obvious. He could spot the logo…”

“Right… Well, let’s brainstorm. We have until noon tomorrow to come up with a better plan. He’s coming by for lunch,” Rory grinned, happy that everything between her and her mother was back to normal.

\---

**LUKE’S DINER – THE NEXT MORNING (SATURDAY 17 th SEPTEMBER)**

Lorelai stood outside the diner and handed a man some cash. He tipped his hat, got into a truck and drove away. Lorelai entered the diner and grinned widely, “Taylor Doose owes me a favor!”

Luke walked around the counter and handed her a mug with decaf coffee. “How did you manage that?”

“I told Taylor that I used all my womanly power to persuade you to remove the jungle gym and unblock his window. He is very grateful and said, I quote ‘If you ever need anything, Lorelai, I’m here for you.’”

“Unbelievable…” Luke murmured and shook his head lightly.

“And since he has no proof of there ever being a ‘jungle gym’ in your diner you don’t have to pay the fine. You’re welcome,” Lorelai beamed and took a sip of her not-coffee. She instantly made a face and put the cup down on the nearest table.

“How do you get to have a favor? It was your stupid urn. I should get the favor,” Luke argued and stood with his hands on his hips.

“Well, if you play nice, maybe I let you use the favor.”

“Thank you.”

“Ready to plan a wedding?” Lorelai smiled and sat down at the biggest table in the diner, which was already filled with papers, magazines, Lorelai’s laptop, and several empty plates. Luke sat opposite her and Lorelai started typing away on her laptop. They talked about their ideas for the wedding but ever so often drifted off into other topics and didn’t make much headway. Lorelai mainly recited wedding horror stories from the Independence Inn while Luke flipped through the magazines and was shocked by the prices he found printed next to flowers, dresses or venues. He was reading an article with great interest when Lorelai held a picture of a flower arrangement under his nose and asked, “What do you think of that?”

Luke looked at it closely and shrugged, “I don’t know…”

“Come on, Luke! We have been here all morning and all we have agreed on is that we get married after this little man’s born, so I look good in the wedding photos.”

“I’m sorry. I’m not good at… this.” Luke got up and took the empty plates. “I have to get ready for the lunch crowd.”

“That’s okay, Sookie should be here any minute now.”

Before Luke could walk away, the doorbells announced the next customer. Sookie burst through the door, loaded with bags and several folders in her arms. “Move. Move!” she shooed Luke out of the way and dumped all her stuff onto the table.

“What’s all this?” Luke asked and eyed the mountain dubiously.

“This,” Sookie gestured in ecstasy, “is your wedding! I can’t believe this is happening!” She winked at Luke, who looked rather scared.

“That’s uh… great, but… could you move upstairs? I’m having customers coming in for lunch pretty soon and I’d like to have that table,” Luke nodded towards the curtain, but Lorelai shook her head. “You’ve got all your bills laid out upstairs.”

Luke remembered the mess he had left on the table, “Oh, right… just move it aside.”

Lorelai refused his offer strongly, “I’m not touching your piles. Last time I did that you yelled at me for ruining your system.”

Luke remembered and couldn’t argue against that. “Fine, at least move to the counter.”

“You want a counter-planned wedding, seriously?” Lorelai wasn’t pleased and Luke surrendered, “Forget I said anything.”

“Great!” Sookie took a seat and opened the first folder. “So, how far did you two get this morning?”

“Well, it should be legal and happen after February.”

“Perfect! Michel can’t until February anyway, because he signed up for his booty boot camp again. Miss Patty is going to be in Baja the first two weeks in April. And Babette said the last two weeks in April are bad because her cat's expecting kittens.”

“That little tramp,” Lorelai giggled and was glad Sookie came that prepared.

“Kirk has no conflicts, but Lulu is going to Florida sometime between May 15th and June 1st.”

Luke overheard Sookie and walked over to the table shaking his head, “We're not moving wedding plans around for people whose last name I don't even know.”

Sookie gave him a disapproving look, “Luke, Luke, Luke! Do you know who I am?”

Luke gave her an equally annoyed look back, “Of course I know who you are.”

“Apparently not. I’m the B-F-O-T-B; Best Friend Of The Bride. It is my responsibility to help plan this event. To talk through all the details, to taste the cake and pick the invitations, and to keep you, the fiancé of the bride, from having to pretend to be interested in things that he has no interest in.”

“I have an int…” Luke wanted to defend himself but Sookie held her hand up and interrupted, “No you don't!”

“I have an interest!” Luke insisted which resulted in Sookie repeating her made-up title and drove Luke away with wild gesticulations. Sookie looked proud the way she handled Luke butting in, completely ignoring that this was his wedding too. “So, what about location? How about a hometown wedding? Town square, ceremony in the gazebo.”

“Gaze-blah,” Lorelai gagged and stuck her tongue out.

“OK. Boring. I got it. How about a church wedding?” Sookie continued and they discussed several options, then moved on to dresses. It came to a surprise when Lorelai wasn’t sure if she wanted to wear white and Luke who had been trying to keep up with their chatter, stood immediately at their table, “Of course you're gonna wear white. Brides wear white. That's the rule.”

“Says who?” Lorelai questioned him and browsed another magazine Sookie had pulled out of her assortment.

“Well, uh, you have to wear white. My mother wore white. Her mother wore white.”

“Luke!” Sookie yelled and raised a finger at him.

“What!?”

“Who am I?” she repeated obnoxiously.

“Aw, geez.” Luke walked away in a huff.

Sookie turned her attention back to Lorelai who held her cell phone tightly in one hand. “Everything okay? You are checking your phone every ten seconds,” Sookie asked, giving Lorelai a nervous glance. She seemed rather distracted and Sookie wondered if going forward with the wedding plans was what she truly wanted. Lorelai put the phone away and shook her head. “Sorry, Rory is meeting Chris for lunch and I’m just curious what he wants…”

\---

**AT THE SAME TIME IN A RESTAURANT IN NEW HAVEN**

Christopher sat at a table, waiting. He saw Rory walk in and stood up to wave at her. “Rory! Over here.” Rory made her way through the busy coffee shop towards him. “You look good, kid. How are you? Have you grown?” Chris asked and wrapped Rory in a big hug. She hugged him back slightly uncomfortable. It had been a while and last time they hadn’t parted on good terms.

“Hey Dad. You look good too,” she stated flatly and forced a smile, but her father didn’t seem to notice. “Sit! Sit. I’m so happy you’re here. I’ve missed you,” he continued in a chipper tone and they sat down. “How’s your mom?”

It hadn’t even taken him a full minute before bringing up Lorelai and Rory sighed. “Dad,” she warned and clenched her jaw.

“What? I’m not even allowed to ask?” The smile never left his face and Rory took a deep breath. “Sure… She’s good. Really good.”

“Good. I’m glad,” Chris responded, and he seemed sincere. There was a moment of silence where they both just looked at each other until Rory asked, “So… What's going on with you?”

“Well,” Chris started and had a joyous glint in his eyes. “My grandfather died.”

Rory’s fake smile fell, and she stared at her father with raised eyebrows. “Oh… Oh my… I’m so… sorry?” She didn’t intend to make it sound like a question but Chris’ sunshine face about the tragic news confused her greatly and she didn’t know how to react.

“Oh, don’t be,” Chris waved her off. “The old man was ninety-eight, long life, great life. His last words were an inappropriate pass at the nurse tending to him. Pretty good one, too. I made a mental note of it.”

Rory furrowed her brows and shook her head slightly from side to side. “Uhu,” was all she could manage, while Chris continued his story. “The old guy was actually pretty cool, and for some reason he always liked me. And he was the Hayden with the purse strings. Long story short, I'm rich!”

Chris looked like a five-year-old on Christmas morning and Rory wouldn’t have been surprised if he had started jumping up and down in glee. “You're rich?” she repeated slowly, realizing that that must’ve been the good news he had talked about on the phone.

“Ridiculously,” Chris confirmed. “I mean, I'm not Bill Gates by a long shot, but I've got money! And I want to share it. I've set Gigi up with funds for private nursery school and prep school and college and grad school and post-grad school and Ph.D. school and a wedding and a divorce if she wants it, and another wedding or she can buy a bunch of cats and a lifetime supply of Twizzlers and popcorn if that's her choice. But she's all set, and now I want to take care of you. You and your mom.”

“Oh,” Rory finally understood what this meeting was all about.  “Oh, Dad, I don't know what to say.” Rory’s mind wanderer to a place where it didn’t go very often, but it did go there now. She thought of all the birthday’s he had missed. All the Christmases, first days at school, graduations and all the other life events where other kids had two parents to accompany them. She was about to turn 21, definitely not a child anymore, but here was her father, who had planned out a whole life for his other daughter and was able to give her things he never gave to Rory. What she had wanted during her childhood was a present father and money can’t make up for lost time. The only person that came in mind that deserved monetary compensation was her mother.

“What do you want? A car? How about a Bentley? They're pretty sweet. Or a house? Or a tract of land to build a new one? I can do that. I can buy you a tract. Or is there someone you hate that you'd like to say 'I can buy and sell you' to? Because you can have the funds to make that happen. You can crush people with money. You want some people-crushing money?” Chris rambled and Rory had a hard time keeping up with his torrent of words.

“What?” Rory quickly thought of Mitchum, but nobody had that amount of money.

“Come on, kid, everybody needs something!” Chris pressured her and Rory desperately tried directing the topic away from her and her discomfort. “What about you? You should keep the money for yourself,” she said, hoping Chris would bite.

“Ah, I bought a new bike, I bought a giant audio system. I'm done. What else do I want? Nothing. Come on. Let me give you something. A castle in Ireland? A Civil War cannon. A Library! You like books, right? Buy yourself every book you’ve ever wanted.” Chris was unstoppable.

Rory chewed her bottom lip but came up blank. “I don’t know…”

“Pay off something then. Outstanding bills. Pay off Chilton - or I pay for Yale.”

Rory sat up straight. Now that was an idea worth considering… “Yale? You’d do that? You know, Yale's kind of expensive…”

“Haven’t you been listening? I’m loaded!” Chris beamed with excitement.

At that moment Rory wished her mother was there. She’d know what to say. “I have to think about it. Can I think about it?”

“Sure! Take all the time you need. Money’s not going anywhere. So, you hungry?” Chris handed her a menu and continued smiling.

“A little,” Rory admitted.

“Eh, let's eat,” Chris chuckled “I'm paying for lunch!”

\---

**LUKE’S DINER – LATER THAT DAY**

“Come on Luke, you need to look the part!” Sookie squealed and chased Luke around the diner, waving wildly with a magazine.

“Not part penguin!” Luke bellowed back and shoved Sookie’s hand violently away in an attempt to escape the madwoman.

“We’re not done here, Luke! You had your chance at getting married in casual wear, now we’re back to formal, so deal with it.”

“Casual? You mean half-naked at the beach?!”

“Hey, that was Lorelai’s suggestion!”

Luke glared at Lorelai, who just smirked back. While Sookie had tried to convince Luke that a wedding at the beach would be oh so romantic, Lorelai had proposed that he could go shirtless and just wear a tie around his neck.

“I won’t get married in shorts! I will wear socks and shoes,” Luke started listing his preferences, while Lorelai interjected, “Oh yeah, shorts and socks until the knees are an awful combination.” Luke glared at her but continued unfazed. “BUT, I will not wear a tail coat! I’ll wear a suit, a tuxedo if you like, hell I’ll even wear a vest if it pleases you, but don’t make me look like bloody Prince Charming!”

Lorelai’s eyes went wide and a new idea made her giddy with excitement. “Dress uniform!” she blurted and while Sookie turned to her with an equally thrilled facial expression, Luke went pale. “Time to join the army, Luke!” Lorelai sang with euphoria.

“You can cut the cake with the saber! I love it when they do that,” Sookie sighed with a dreamy voice and misty eyes.

Luke’s horrified look made both women burst out laughing. The diner's phone rang, and Luke staggered to pick it up, feeling light-headed and slightly panicked. “Luke’s” he whispered into the phone, not sure if he even had made a sound.

“Hey Luke, is my mom there?” asked a familiar voice and Luke knew that the girl on the other end of the line could either sink him or be his lifeline. “Help,” he croaked into the phone, hoping for the latter.

Rory, confused by the sound of Luke’s voice, started to whisper herself, “Luke, are you held at gunpoint?”

Luke finally managed to clear his throat and groaned, “Almost. Sookie and Lorelai are planning my demise.”

“Ah, and you don’t want to wear tails,” Rory replied knowingly, and Luke lifted an eyebrow. “How do you know that?”

“Luke – how long have I known you?” she asked, but before Luke could answer, Rory chuckled, “Plus, Mom is texting me a live feed from their wedding preparations and I think she has exhausted her battery, that’s why I’m calling you. So, if you hand me over, I can put in a good word for you.”

“Thank you,” Luke said warmly and held the phone to his chest before calling across the diner, “Lorelai, your phone’s dead!”

Lorelai sat up straight and flipped her phone open. The screen stayed black and she swore under her breath. Luke waved with the handset in her direction and she finally understood his message.

She yanked the phone out of Luke’s hand and sputtered, “How was lunch?”

“Straight to the point, I see,” Rory laughed. “I tell you if you take it easy on Luke. One day you might just give the poor man a heart attack.”

“Aw, he’s strong, he can take it,” Lorelai giggled and gave Luke’s biceps a quick squeeze, but Luke shook his head in disagreement. “Now spill the beans!”

While Rory told Lorelai everything about her meeting with Chris, Luke tried to eavesdrop by walking in and out of the kitchen every few seconds. As the conversation went on his curiosity took over and by the time Rory reached the end of her reproduction, Luke’s head was glued to Lorelai’s, but she didn’t seem to mind. She even placed the receiver so he could hear better and had snuggled into his side, leaning against the back counter.

“I think I take Dad up on his offer,” Rory concluded, and Lorelai sighed, “Well if you’re sure, you’re sure.”

“I am. He owes me. Owes us, big time.”

Lorelai shook her head and drew Luke closer for support. “I understand – but, and trust me, I hate to be the one to bring it up - but, I have to address the pink elephant in the room. What about your grandparents?”

“What about them?” Rory asked indifferently.

“You know what I mean. You and your grandparents are at a huge crossroads. A press-avis if you will. They are the bridges of Madison county, and you are Meryl Streep.”

“As the paper pages go flying off the calendar.”

“Hey, listen to me. I'm serious here. I know you and your grandparents are playing the "who can freeze out who the longest?" Which I know can be fun, but if you ever hope to have a relationship with them again, then someone needs to make the first move. I remember the first Christmas after we left Hartford. We were at The Independence Inn, and I got an invitation to their annual Christmas party, and I didn't go, and that one move defined our entire future relationship. I mean, if I had gone, it would have been awful, but it would have broken the ice, and maybe and I know this is a big "maybe" but maybe we would have been a tad closer than we are now or could ever hope to be.”

“Maybe, maybe not,” Rory shrugged.

“I just know how much you love your grandparents and how important to you it was to have a relationship with them, and I don't want the fact that you inherited my stubbornness to screw all that up.”

“Okay, I hear you.”

“Do you?” Lorelai asked, not really buying it. “Do you tell them?”

“I’ll send them an e-mail,” Rory offered, and Lorelai knew it was better than nothing. “Good,” she nodded. “And do it soon.” She heard Rory sigh and decided to move on to a happier conversation topic. “Hey, since you’re not coming home this weekend, what about next weekend? I can take the days off.”

“Really?” Rory sounded immediately happier. “You should come here and finally see Logan’s place. Come Friday and spend the night!”

Luke took this as a cue to get back to work and let the ladies make their plans. He noticed Sookie sitting at the table all alone. He brought her over a piece of pie. “Peace offering,” he smiled, and she gladly accepted it. Before Luke could turn around, she grabbed him by the sleeve and pulled him closer. With a conspiratorial smile, she handed him a note and patted his hand. “Think about it,” she winked and turned towards her pie like nothing had happened. Luke understood that it wasn’t the moment to read the note and put it in his pocket.

\---

**LORELAI’S HOUSE – WEDNESDAY 21 st SEPTEMBER**

Lorelai entered her house as she did on a regular basis to pick up the mail, check messages and have a look at the progress on the house. She didn’t do much supervising as Luke did. She was only involved when it was decision time, apart from that she tried to stay away and let the men work.

The red light of the answering machine was blinking, and Lorelai pressed the play button. A deep manly voice filled the room. “Lorelai, it's your father. I'm calling to tell you there's been a little mistake with Rory's tuition at Yale. It Seems our check was returned to us. For whatever reason, they did not cash it. Now, don't worry. I'm sure it's just some sort of clerical mix-up. I've been on the phone with the bursar's office all morning. I'm currently waiting for a call from a Mrs. Linwood, and then I'm sure I will get this all cleared up. Tell Rory not to worry. If anyone gives her any trouble, tell them to call me. I will call you later. Goodbye.”

While she listened to the message, she started pacing up and down the short corridor, clenching and unclenching her fists. Her first thought was that Rory obviously hadn’t sent that e-mail, and she felt disappointed. Disappointed that Rory tossed the relationship with her grandparents so easily aside. And she was angry, but not at Rory, at herself. It became obvious once more that she set a bad example to her daughter when it came to dealing with important relationships. She herself was putting off a call to her parents for weeks now. Oh, who was she kidding, months! Luke had reminded her over and over again to tell her parents about the engagement, the pregnancy, the moving in together. She knew he was right and that they deserved to hear it from her. Emily had found out about her last engagement through Sookie’s invite and Lorelai didn’t want to let history repeat itself. She had to make the call. She took the phone to the kitchen and sat down before dialing. After several rings, the answering machine came on and Lorelai silently thanked all the gods.

“Hey, it’s me, Lorelai. I just wanted to let you guys know that, uh… Rory’s tuition is already paid… by Christopher. So, you don’t need to worry about that. And on another note, Luke and I are engaged and, uh… I’m pregnant. Anyway, see you soon. Bye!”

Lorelai hung up the phone, dropped her head on the tabletop and groaned. She could already hear her mother scream. This was _not_ going to end well.

\---

**STARS HOLLOW TOWN SQUARE – NEXT MORNING 22 nd SEPTEMBER**

Lorelai had just left the diner and was about to climb into the Jeep when her phone rang.

“Hello?” she piped happily into the phone and opened the car door.

“You do NOT get to leave a message like this on our answering machine!” screamed a hysteric voice and Lorelai held the phone a good ten inches away from her ear. “Who is this?” she asked irritated.

“Who is this?! Seriously Lorelai, what’s wrong with you?”

“Oh, hello mother,” Lorelai audibly rolled her eyes. “What can I do for you?”

“Explain yourself! What do you mean you’re pregnant?”

“Well, if you don’t know what that means, I really wonder where I come from. I always thought the story about the stork was made up, but…”

“For god’s sake, Lorelai, is this a joke?”

“I believe so. I certainly have never seen a stork delivering a baby in real life.”

“I’m not talking about the stupid bird!”

“No, Mom, no joke, I’m pregnant. By the end of February, you’re going to be a grandma again,” Lorelai confirmed calmly and expected another outrage but was surprised with silence. She checked if her phone battery had run out again and saw that the connection wasn’t lost either. “Heeello? Mom?” she called into the speaker.

“And Luke is the father?” Emily asked carefully. Her voice sounded to come from very far away. A sly grin formed on Lorelai’s lips and she couldn’t help herself. “Aw, Mom, I know how much you _love_ Luke and I hate to disappoint you but, you see, I went to a rock concert the other night and the drummer gave me _such_ a dirty look, it just happened. BAM, pregnant! But Luke’s very supportive.”

“Lorelai!” Emily shouted out of pure shock.

“Now _that_ was a joke,” Lorelai grinned and could imagine her mother’s face going redder by the minute. She could hear Emily taking several calming breaths before she spoke again. “Luke _is_ the father and you _are_ getting married?”

Lorelai had thought that she had spoken clearly, although quickly, but definitely understandable when she had left the voicemail, but now her mother was questioning every word she’d said. “Yes, mother,” Lorelai replied, her patience quickly slipping away. This phone call did not seem to have any purpose.

“Well, it seems congratulations are in order,” Emily finally said, no emotion in her voice.

“Well, that wasn't exactly congratulations, but, sure, close enough,” Lorelai huffed in a reply. She had made it into her car and was about to start the engine when Emily finally dropped the bomb. “You must come to dinner. Tomorrow.”

Lorelai almost laughed out loud at this ridiculous request. “Why?”

“What do you mean, 'why'? You’re getting married and we haven’t seen Luke since…” Right then Emily realized when she had seen that man the last time. “Oh, please, Lorelai. He can’t still hold a grudge after all this time! Maybe you should consider another companion, one with a more forgiving heart.”

Luke was actually quite good at holding a grudge, but he was also very forgiving. Lorelai guessed it depended on the person involved and she herself found it easy to hold a grudge against Emily Gilmore. So she pushed the comment aside and chose a different approach. “Or you could apologize. Otherwise, I’m afraid Luke can’t come to dinner. I’ll bring Rory instead. How’s that as my companion?” She over-pronounced the last word to show her mother what a preposterous word choice that was.

It was Emily’s turn to question that decision with a loud “Why?!”

“Because I had plans with her and since you are hijacking my only night with my daughter, I’d rather bring her along than miss her altogether.”

Emily seemed to take her time mulling the options over and agreed. “Fine, she can come.”

Lorelai didn’t want to let her off the hook that easily. “And you’ll be nice to her?”

“See you then, Lorelai. Wear something nice,” Emily snubbed and hung up the phone. Of course her mother’s last words had to be a quip at her.

\---

**GILMORE MANSION – FRIDAY 23 rd SEPTEMBER - EVENING**

Lorelai and Rory stood in front of the Gilmore’s house, neither one of them making a move to ring the bell. “Are you sure we’re gonna make it out alive today?” Rory asked her mother skeptically. Lorelai had roped her into this Friday night dinner under the pretense that both grandparents weren’t upset with her bailing on them anymore.

Lorelai herself had dumped quite the news on her parents and her expectations for the evening where beyond bloodshed. At least Luke knew where she and Rory were so the bodies would be found eventually.

“Let’s find out,” she said and pressed the bell quickly, afraid it might bite her finger off. They were greeted by a maid and moved into the living room, where Richard was reading a book. He said hello without looking up and offered drinks but continued reading. Lorelai and Rory exchanged glances when Emily entered from the patio.

“Oh. You're here,” she noted, as if it were a surprise. “Richard, are you getting them a drink?”

Richard finally put the book aside and poured some Martinis at the bar. Emily tried to excuse herself to go back outside and Richard had the sudden need for colder ice. Lorelai and Rory were left alone in the living room. “I’d say the odds are sixty/forty,” Lorelai grimaced and looked at her Martini glass, unsure what to do with it.

“Wow, you’re optimistic,” Rory mumbled and took a sip.

“No, sixty is we’re gonna be decapitated. Here, drink my Martini. It will make death less painful.”

“How gracious of you,” Rory rolled her eyes.

Richard returned with a new bucket of ice and started re-shaking his drink. Lorelai went over to the open patio door and handed her drink to Emily. “Mom, could you come in here just for a sec? I'd like to ask you something.”

Emily reluctantly put her paintbrush down and followed Lorelai inside but headed towards the stairs. “Let me go change first. I can't sit down in my painting clothes.”

Richard tested his drink and said, “This ice has a funny taste to it, I’m gonna get some more,” and hurried out towards the kitchen.

“Come on, you two! Your clothes are fine, your drink is fine, now let’s sit down and talk, please!”

“Talk about what?” Emily asked, as she stood at the foot of the stairs.

“Whatever you’re upset about. Like Christopher paying for Yale or…”

“Let me explain,” Rory interjected. “He came to me, and he asked if he could do anything and I let him pay for Yale. He's my father.”

Emily laughed out loud and said snidely, “How convenient that he's your father _now_. I find it very amusing that Christopher is suddenly such a wonderful person.” She turned to Lorelai and continued, “It seems to me when I was in cahoots with him, everyone thought that I was a villain, and now suddenly you're in cahoots with him, and that's perfectly fine.”

Lorelai exhaled loudly. “I’m not in cahoots with anyone. I don’t even use the word ‘cahoots’ and neither should you.”

“Mom has nothing to do with this,” Rory clarified.

“Then what is this? You just wanted to hurt us?” Emily asked snidely.

“By taking money from my father?” Rory had narrowed her eyes and gesticulated wildly, not understanding her grandmother’s attacks at all.

“Yes, exactly!” Richard shouted.

“I've had enough of this. I'm going back out to touch up my moonscape,” Emily spat and turned towards the patio. Richard took some steps in the direction of his study, with the excuse of having some work to do, and Rory was about to leave the house entirely.

“HEY!” Lorelai shouted and they all stopped in their movement. “This is not gonna happen. You're not going back out to your moonscape, you're not going back to work, and you're not going home. Now, we all agreed to have Friday night dinner, and we're here, and I smell dinner, and, yes, apparently there are some issues to be worked out, but no one, and I mean no one, is leaving here until we do!”

The silence that fell on them didn’t last long. Rory tried to apologize to her grandparents, but her words sounded too sour and Emily sniped back, calling her ungrateful and spoiled. Richard backed his wife up loudly and Lorelai had never been happier to see a salad in her entire life. By the time the main course was served the air was filled with so much tension, someone could have cut it with a knife.

“So, when’s the wedding?” Emily asked and Lorelai almost chocked on broccoli and gulped down her water before she could speak. “We haven’t decided yet,” she croaked and refilled her glass instantly.

“You should decide soon, we might have plans,” Emily said with a cool almost disinterested tone. Lorelai raised an eyebrow and looked at her mother. “You have already plans for the whole next year?”

“Next year? So – no winter wedding?” Emily seemed genuinely surprised.

“No, Mom, unfortunately, the Romanov’s are out of town. We’re thinking of June instead,” Lorelai mocked her mother and Emily’s surprised face grew even bigger. “June? Richard are we here in June?”

Richard, who had tried to stay out of this conversation, responded politely, “I believe we are.”

“All right. June. Is there any specific reason so late?” Emily questioned and Lorelai gave her a frazzled look. “I thought you opposed to me marrying Luke and now you can’t wait?”

Emily focused on cutting her meat and said without looking up, “A lot can happen in one year…”

Lorelai pondered for a moment what her mother meant by that. “You think we’re not gonna make it,” Lorelai concluded and stared at Emily, who stayed silent. “Oh, that’s just great.”

“I didn’t say that, Lorelai. I do have however my concerns. I am your mother after all.”

“What kind of concerns? Let’s hear them,” Lorelai asked slightly agitated and held Emily’s gaze.

“Well, he is a divorcee. According to the CDC you are much more likely to get divorced if you’ve had a previous divorce. And this time children are involved. He wouldn’t be able to simply walk away” Emily explicated.

Richard unexpectedly chimed in, “Don’t forget that you’re a woman of means. You have a lot to lose, Lorelai. You should think about signing a prenup. I could help you set it up.”

“Then, of course, there’s the matter of the name. Rory is a Gilmore and in case of a divorce, it would make things easier if your second child were also a Gilmore, that way the three of you remain a family. Have you thought about that?” Emily looked at Lorelai rebukingly, who sat there with her mouth open. “Woah, guys, you’re getting ahead of yourselves! A minute ago you thought we’re not getting married and now we’re already divorced?”

Emily shook her head, “You need to think ahead. It has always been a weakness of yours. What did you have in mind? Take _his_ name?” She had managed to render Lorelai speechless. She knew that the question was justifiable, even though the reasons for Emily to ask were not. She wanted to be the wife Luke had always dreamed of and give him the family he deserved. _But_ she was Lorelai Gilmore, she always had been, and she somehow thought she always would be. She wouldn’t admit that out loud, especially not in front of her parents, but she was proud of being a Gilmore.

“It is a simple question, Lorelai,” Emily said impatiently.

“I - I don’t know… I haven’t thought about it,” Lorelai stammered. Luke probably didn’t mind whatever she chose to do, as long as they were getting married, but Emily had managed to start a conflict within Lorelai.

“Well, you should!” Emily prompted. “Your child will be born before you’re married. What name will it have? Is it a Gilmore and once you’re married you change the name to - what’s Luke’s name again?”

Finally, an easy question. Lorelai answered quickly, “Danes.”

Emily took a deep breath and looked Lorelai deep in the eyes. “As you know, the Gilmore name carries a certain weight in society. There is a legacy behind.” She spoke slowly in order to make Lorelai pay attention to every last syllable. “As a Gilmore, your child has greater chances in life. A name can speak volumes, further one’s career, lead to connections, do you understand?”

Lorelai had heard ‘because you’re a Gilmore’ one too many times during her childhood, whenever she didn’t behave appropriately and she had no need to be reminded, so she counterattacked, “What if my kid is a major disappointment like me and only brings shame to the Gilmore name? Do you wanna risk it?” Lorelai narrowed her eyes and leaned a bit forward to give her words some more pazazz.

“Don’t be silly. We wouldn’t let that happen. Your child would be aware of the privilege and the honor it is to carry the Gilmore name. Danes is a commoner’s name, simply not known. There is no importance there, no history. Don’t look at me like that, you know it’s true. Being a Gilmore helped Rory getting into Yale, she made great connections along the way, why not give your next child the same opportunities? As a Danes, he or she has limited chances.”

“I don’t think the name is that important...”

“You say that now, wait until you apply to Harvard.” This hit a nerve, and Emily knew it. Lorelai hadn’t thought of that but there was another child of hers that maybe one day wanted to go to Harvard. Rory got into Harvard because she went to Chilton and she got into Chilton because – Headmaster Charleston knew the Gilmores and it set her apart from other applicants. “We’ll figure it out,” Lorelai protested weakly and Emily’s patience finally snapped, and she yelled, “Oh, for goodness sake, Lorelai, just once in your life be reasonable and make the right decision! Danes is not good enough! Don’t you see!”

“Fine, then I’ll tell Luke to change his name and he can be a Gilmore too! I hope it makes you happy!”

Emily fell back in her chair and stared at Lorelai with her mouth open. Her whole speech had backfired badly and now she envisioned people coming up to her and asking if Luke Gilmore from that filthy diner was related to her. Having him as a son-in-law was already an impertinence but sharing a name!

“I thought so,” Lorelai grinned and leaned back as well. A maid came in and collected the plates. She was soon back with some ice cream bowls and left again.

Lorelai dug into her bowl and was surprised by the rich flavor. “This is really good sorbet,” she nodded approvingly, and Emily was pleased. “I know, isn't it? Theresa made it herself,” she said proudly.

Rory licked her spoon and guessed the flavor, “Mango?”

“Passion fruit,” Emily corrected, and Lorelai indulged. Even Richard joined in on the compliments and the evening seemed to have finally gone past the thick air.

But as the saying goes, don’t count your chickens before they’re hatched.

While chatting over coffee in the living room Rory mentioned Tweenie Halpern and that she was going to give her daughter a tour of Yale, which lead to Emily enclose that Rory was no longer part of the D.A.R., which lead to a new fight between grandmother and granddaughter. They even started hunting each other around the house, leaving Richard and Lorelai sitting on the couch.

They sat in silence for a moment, listening to the other two women screaming at each other in the kitchen. Richard wasn’t actually paying much attention to the elevated voices. He was observing his daughter closely. Although the evening had been stressful and somewhat upsetting, Lorelai was surrounded by a natural glow. Richard didn’t fail to notice how happy and graceful she was. “So, how are you doing?” Richard asked with a loving smile.

Lorelai noticed his warm tone and smiled back at him. She knew what he was asking although he had not yet verbally acknowledged her momentary state. She laid one hand over her small bump. “I’m good. Very good. It’s going very well.”

“Good,” Richard replied. “I’m glad. I didn’t know you were… trying,” he said a bit uncomfortable. After all, he didn’t want to discuss sex with his daughter.

“Ha, me either,” Lorelai laughed and immediately bit her tongue at the surprised expression on Richard’s face. “So, this wasn’t planned?” he asked, his eyebrows almost touching his hairline.

“I knew it!” The shrieking voice behind Lorelai made her jump. “Mom!”

“You got pregnant by accident – again!” Emily continued with a shrill voice. “You haven’t learned anything from your past mistakes. At least this time you’re getting married!”

“I’m not getting married because I’m pregnant!” Lorelai defended herself to no avail.

“Oh really?” Emily sniped and folded her arms.

“Yes, really! I want to marry Luke because I love him and he loves me!”

“Christopher loved you too,” Emily said matter-of-factly, and Lorelai couldn’t believe she dared to bring him up.

“That was different,” Lorelai snapped, and Emily stared back icily, “How?”

“We were sixteen! We didn't want to get married! That’s how!” Lorelai rose from the couch to release some tension but it didn’t help.

“When you get pregnant, you get married! A child needs a mother and a father!” Emily joined in on the shouting and the two women came face to face.

“Oh, my god!” Lorelai threw her hand in the air in exasperation, not believing the situation she found herself in.

\---

**LUKE’S DINER – LATER THAT NIGHT**

“I’m changing my name!” Lorelai announced loudly while entering the diner. The townspeople were used to her loud entrées but there were some out-of-towners who gave her surprised looks. Lorelai sat on her usual chair by the counter and dropped her forehead on the countertop. Luke leaned against the back counter and smiled lopsidedly. “Let me guess. It’s Bananahammock?”

Lorelai lifted her head and scowled at him, “I’m being serious.”

“Sorry,” he cleared his throat and folded his arms over his chest. “What name did you have in mind?”

“Yours, you doofus!” she gnarled and laid her head back down. Luke had chosen to be funny tonight and it didn’t fit with her mood.

“Excuse me?!” Luke exclaimed a little more high-pitched than intended. He wasn’t sure he had heard right.

With a loud groan, Lorelai lifted her head again and sat upright on her bar stool. She looked Luke up and down, taking in his perplexed expression. Sometimes it really would make life easier if he could read her mind. “Danes. Lorelai Danes. From here on out. Don’t you like it?” Lorelai eyed him carefully and Luke felt under scrutiny. “You want to take my name??”

“Oh, for god’s sake, Luke. Keep up!” she yapped. “Yes, your name! We’re a family – you and I and this one,” Lorelai gestured between the three of them. “We need a name and you can’t be a Gilmore – not that you’d want to – but you can’t, because oh, the scandal. My mother would have to leave the country and go into witness protection, which after second thought would be great, so maybe you _should_ become a Gilmore. I swear to god my mother drives me insane! I can’t please her no matter what I do. She doesn’t leave any room for… anything. The only option that is probably acceptable to her is that this baby is not yours, you are not you and I’m not me! I tried, Luke – I really did, but there is no point. Emily Gilmore will never approve of anything I do, so I give up. I let go. I take your name and I close that chapter. It is Gil-no-more!” A serene look spread over her features and Lorelai exhaled. Luke didn’t know what to think, “Are you sure that’s what you want?”

“Yes!” Lorelai affirmed strongly but then her face fell. “Wait – you don’t want me to take your name?”

“No!” Luke yelled in despair, giving her hand a reassuring squeeze over the counter. “I’d be honored. I just… you mentioned your mother like five times and I don’t want you to take my name just to spite her. I don’t want you to regret it.”

“Luke, no! How could I ever regret that? Sharing the family name with my husband and my son, it’s kind of what I always wanted.”

Luke liked the sound of that very much, but he wouldn’t be Luke if he didn’t consider everybody involved. “What about Rory? You know you could always hyphen. Take both names, for both children,” he suggested, and Lorelai’s smile grew bigger. That’s why she loved the man in front of her so much. Always so thoughtful, kind and selfless.

\---

**HOUSE – 28 th SEPTEMBER - EVENING**

Luke and Lorelai stood in their still very unorganized living room, sorting through several opened boxes. While Luke went through the things Emily had sent to them, Lorelai was cataloging them and decided what to keep and what to give away or sell. Most things she wanted to donate, and other more valuable items were going to charities. Luke had just been making fun of some wooden candle holders that looked rather phallic, when the doorbell rang. Lorelai answered the door still giggling but went wide-eyed in an instant. “Dad!” she called out to the large man standing in front of her.

“Hello, Lorelai,” Richard stood in front of her and smiled politely. “I thought you'd want this,” he said and moved aside to reveal her dollhouse sitting on the porch behind him.

Lorelai was taken aback, “Thanks. I do.”

Richard took a deep breath and said, “I want to apologize.” Lorelai thought she had misheard. Her father had never apologized for anything for as long as she could remember. He had always justified his actions, no matter how hurtful or wrong they were to other people. “Your mother and I had a lengthy conversation and we came to the joint conclusion, that we haven’t acted properly. We’d like to apologize and to make an offer of amends. We have a proposition.”

A peace offering from her parents could only mean more trouble. It was a trap, she was sure of that, but she was also intrigued to hear their offer. “Go on,” she nodded, keeping a stern facial expression.

“Rory is turning twenty-one years old in ten days. We know that you might have plans, but if it isn’t too inconvenient, we’d like to host whatever celebration you have in mind at our house.”

Lorelai didn’t understand how this was in any way an act of reconciliation. “Why?”

“Lorelai, last time you fell pregnant, it didn’t go as we planned,” Richard started to explain and regretted the word choice immediately as Lorelai cut him off sharply, “Whose fault is that?!”

Richard lifted a hand to silence her and continued calmly, “We’ve gone through estrangement, we’ve missed seeing our granddaughter growing up. We’ve almost lost our daughter.” A deep sadness quickly flushed over Richard’s face and Lorelai felt a strong urge to wrap her arms around her father. “Let’s not repeat the horrors of the past. We want to be a part of your life, of your family, of our grandson’s life.” Richard's eyes were almost begging, and Lorelai caved.

“I’ll talk to Rory. If she agrees, I don’t see why not.” A small smile formed on her lips and Richard nodded. He was content, as he got more than he had expected. He was sure she’d block any advancements from their part and that he’d have to reason with Lorelai until her stubbornness would wear down.

“Alright then,” Richard sighed as there was nothing left to say and walked to his car. Lorelai looked after him. Later she’ll blame the hormones, the bright moonlight or Luke for what she did next.

“Dad, wait,” Lorelai ran down the porch steps and hurried over the lawn to catch up with Richard before he got into his car. He stood up straight and looked down at Lorelai who stood very close to him, smiling shyly. “Will you walk me down the aisle?”


	8. Birthday Bash & Wedding Plans

**FRONT PORCH – WEDNESDAY 28 th SEPTEMBER 2005 - EVENING **

Lorelai paced in front of her door up and down, shaking her head and throwing her hands in the air. “He’s good. Really good. He plays mind games and always gets what he wants. He’s the Vito Corleone of my family. And who am I?! The middle son nobody cares about but is still somewhat relevant to the plot? This is unbelievable. I thought we were through. I said I was done. You were there when I said that!” Lorelai stopped her pacing for a while glaring at Luke’s back, catching her breath. The pacing continued immediately. “And now I technically invited them to our wedding! I don’t know what came over me! He’s unbelievable,” she huffed and didn’t pay much attention to Luke who crouched next to her dollhouse, trying to move it. “He sure is,” Luke mumbled and pulled at the heavy object with all his might. It was too bulky to be held and too heavy to be picked up. “How did he lift this thing?” he asked breathing heavily.

“On top of that, I now need to convince Rory, that letting her grandparents throw her birthday party is a good idea. Why did I agree to this? Why didn’t you come and stop me?!” Lorelai asked hysterically, increasing the pacing. Luke shot her a look that meant she’d never listen to him anyway and turned back to the task at hand. He was still crouching on the porch and ran his fingers through his hair, wondering how the heck Richard had moved the dollhouse from his car to where it sat now.

“No matter what party I have in mind, my mother will hijack it and make it _her_ party. Then Rory will be miserable, which will make me miserable, which will end in a fight and nothing will be resolved. Why do they think this is a good idea?!” Lorelai argued.

Luke started another attempt, grunted loudly and frowned at the puppet mansion. His frustration grew considerably since it didn’t budge an inch and he didn’t consider himself a weak man. “Does this thing have, like, a real foundation or something? It weighs a thousand pounds!” he snapped and stood up, resting his hands on his hips. “Did he have guys with him?!” he asked puzzled, and Lorelai finally stopped her pacing. “What?”

Luke pointed at the dollhouse. “Guys, to help him lift this thing.”

“No, no guys,” Lorelai replied irritated, realizing that they were leading two completely different conversations at the same time. Luke’s eyes widened in disbelief, “No guys? Your dad is Hercules!”

Lorelai leaned against the porch railing and slumped her shoulders. “We had plans. We were gonna go to Atlantic City. We were gonna sit at a blackjack table at 11:59, we were gonna order martinis, which wouldn’t be appropriate now considering I’m pregnant, and we were gonna be playing 21 when she turned twenty-one.” Luke walked over to her and laid his arms around her shoulders, holding her close, while Lorelai spoke. “And then hopefully we'd win, and we'd take our winnings and we'd buy 21 things. And then there was a thing about 21 guys that again wouldn't really be appropriate anymore, but it was a good plan.” She leaned against his chest, her head resting on his shoulder and Luke wrapped some curls loosely around his fingers, stroking her back gently with his other hand.

“You could still do all that. Do it next year,” he offered as a consolidation.

“Next year wouldn’t be special,” Lorelai moaned and buried her face deeper into Luke’s shoulder. “Besides you can’t play 22 in blackjack.”

Luke nodded slowly, keeping a neutral facial expression. Lorelai noticed his silence and lifted her head to look at him, a cheeky smile playing on her lips. “You have no idea how to play blackjack, do you?”

“Not much of a gambler, I’m afraid.”

“That’s not true! I could teach you. It’d be a change from strip poker,” Lorelai suggested, grinning mischievously. Luke rocked with laughter before he could press a kiss to her forehead. Lorelai was still amazed that she could make this man laugh like that. It was one of her favorite sounds.

“Oh well, Rory probably doesn't even remember the plan. It’s not like we talked about it every day. It was just something we thought of.”

“I’m sure she remembers the plan.”

Lorelai pressed her lips together and shrugged, stepping out of Luke’s embrace. “I'm hungry. I'm ordering pizza,” she said over her shoulder and opened the front door. Before she stepped inside, she turned around and said, “By the way, the top comes off,” then disappeared in the house.

Luke turned his attention back to the dollhouse and sighed, “Of course it does.”

\---

**Luke's diner – SATURDAY 1 st OCTOBER**

The last couple of days had consisted of getting Lorelai to part with even more junk she didn’t need, like videotapes of random episodes from 21 Jump Street. The house had become rather empty and Tom’s plan was to get the painters started on Monday, which didn’t give them much time to decide on colors. Lorelai didn’t work well under pressure as Luke realized soon enough and by Saturday they still hadn’t come to a decision.

Lorelai sat at the counter flipping through color sample cards, deciding on new paint schemes for every single building in town except her own house, driving Luke up a wall. He was threatening her that he’d confiscate the sampler if she wasn’t focusing on the real target when two small girls accompanied by a woman interrupted them. They wanted him as a sponsor for their soccer team and Luke obviously turned them down. Lorelai looked at him disapprovingly. “Wow, Oliver Twist just kindly asked for a little more gruel, and you kicked him right in the junk.”

Luke didn’t quite catch her meaning and ordered her to mid her own business, pointing sharply at the cards in her hands, but Lorelai insisted, “How is this not your thing?”

“I don't want to coach a soccer team,” Luke stated, brows furrowed, wondering why on earth Lorelai thought this _would_ be his thing.

“They don't need a coach. How closely were you listening?” She had lifted an eyebrow.

“Well, not that closely. Kids usually talk, but they don't say anything. You know, they just kind of yammer, so if you don't find them cute, they're just boring.”

Lorelai shook her head at the future father of her child and said sarcastically, “God, you really make me look forward to raising a child with you…”

Luke realized that what he had just said sounded bad, especially now, but the fact that he wasn’t a kids-kind-of-guy was still true. “You know what I mean,” he tried to downplay the statement, hoping Lorelai won’t get upset.

“It's just a sponsorship. You don't even have to go to the games, and you'd get to have your name on the back of the jerseys. Free advertising, how cool is that?”

“Well, yeah, that might be all right,” he admitted, and Lorelai’s enthusiasm was kinda cute.

“Hey, and you'll get that photo that sponsors get of the whole team sitting on the field, and you can display it like Al's Pancake World does. Ooh, Al… that sea-green with burnt-sienna trim.”

Luke snatched the sample thingy away from her and held it behind his back. “I warned you.”

Lorelai squealed and apologized immediately, trying to get it back, but Luke didn’t move. He nodded towards the girls and asked, “Think they're any good?”

Lorelai turned towards the little girls and shrugged. “I don't know if that matters.”

Luke exhaled and handed her the color samples back. He walked over to the girls and Maggie's table and reluctantly offered to give it a shot. The girls jumped up and hugged Luke, one from each side and Luke shot Lorelai a desperate look.

Lorelai pointed at a blue shade from the sample thingy and whispered, “For the jerseys.” The joyous glint in her eyes made Luke smile.

\---

**LUKE’S DINER – SATURDAY 8 th OCTOBER – LUNCH HOUR**

One week later the girls had their first match with their new jersey’s and Lorelai had persuaded Luke to go down and watch them, since he had taken the weekend off to celebrate Rory’s birthday.

The match had been cruel, brutal and frankly disturbing, and Lorelai very much regretted going to see it. Luke and Lorelai had escaped in his truck before they were caught by any of the soccer moms. Unfortunately, Luke had offered to have a celebratory meal at the diner, win or lose. The girls’ soccer team arrived soon after Luke had pushed the tables together and placed cups, plates, and napkins all around. He got the plastic cutlery out, he had seen enough bloodied children for one day.

During the meal, Luke had joined the team and they were discussing the roughness of the match. Luke tried to make them understand that brute force wasn’t always the best course of action, but it didn’t win him any sympathy points. Especially not when he brought up that boys were boys, and girls were girls.

The whole team glared at him in shock and Megan gasped, “I cannot believe I'm hearing this!”

“So we're just supposed to play like cute little girls like we're at some tea party?!” Tilly added angrily, in a mocking girly voice.

“I'm not saying that,” Luke tried to defend himself, looking for a better argument but Tilly rose from her chair and addressed the team, “We want to win. Which means we gotta kick some butt!” She cheered and the others joined in.

Luke sat in his chair looking stunned at Tilly. “You were so shy when I met you…”

He shook his head, got up and went behind the counter to pick up some more napkins. He stood and watched the girls celebrate for a moment before he ducked behind the counter to grab a pack. When he got up and looked back at the kids he had to blink twice.

The boys sitting at the tables were dressed in baseball uniforms and discussed loudly their victory. A tall skinny boy with dark skin and unruly black curls stood up and declared, “We should do this after every game, right Danes?!”

Luke’s jaw dropped and he stared at the boy that had spoken up. He was about to say something about manners but a smaller boy who had his back turned to Luke was quicker, “You should be glad we could come here this once, right Dad?” The boy turned around and grinned at Luke. He had bright blue eyes and Luke’s heart skipped a beat. “Right,” he said hoarsely, not quite understanding what was going on. The boy had already turned back to face his friends, but Luke was unable to look away. He had short brown hair, that had a slight wave to it. It was a bit darker than Luke’s but lighter than Lorelai’s. His eyes were _definitely_ Lorelai’s though, and the long nose looked awfully familiar too. The boy was maybe 12 and seemed strong and broad-shouldered.

“This is really a great thing you are doing here, Mr. Danes.” A woman had walked up to the counter, holding empty bottles. “Is there more of this?”, she added, waving them a little in the air. Luke had to drag his eyes away from the boy to look at the woman in front of him. He knew she was the mother of a kid, but which one completely slipped his mind. “Yes, of course!”, he extended his arms to grab the bottles, realizing he was still holding the napkin package. He awkwardly dropped the pack on the counter and took the bottles, turning to the kitchen to get some more lemonade.

As he appeared back in the diner, the girls had started chanting. He handed the new bottles to the mother at the counter and couldn’t help but smile at them celebrating their first victory of the season. The words ‘right, Dad’ echoed in his head. He felt a warmth spreading in his chest and for the first time in his life, he wasn’t bothered by the noise, the mess, or the kids in his diner.

\---

**GILMORE MANSION – SATURDAY 8 th OCTOBER - EVENING**

Later that day Luke and Lorelai stood uncomfortably in front of the door of the Gilmore’s house.

Luke sighed, “This might be my least favorite door in the world to knock on.”

“What about death's door?” Lorelai asked.

“The reception on the other side might be warmer,” he replied sarcastically and lifted a hand to knock on the door when someone opened from the inside.

“Well, at least you didn't have to knock,” she smirked, and they entered. Upon putting the gift on the mountain of presents by the door, they moved further into the house, looking for Rory. The house was full of people, but Lorelai didn’t know a single person although they had invited almost half of Stars Hollow. They were about to enter the living room when someone called out to them.

“Lorelai, you came. You're here. Hello, Luke,” Emily fake smiled, and they all just awkwardly nodded at each other. “Have you tried a Rory yet?” Emily asked and stopped a passing waiter, who was carrying a tray with martini glasses filled with a pale pink liquid. She took two off and held them up to Luke and Lorelai. While Luke reluctantly took the drink off her, Lorelai reminded her that she couldn’t drink. Emily pursed her lips and made a small ‘oh’ sound. She excused herself and left the two of them alone. Luke took a sip of the drink and looked disgusted.

“Ugh, it tastes pink. God, that's terrible. It's like drinking a ‘My Little Pony’,” he grimaced, and Lorelai laughed at him. “Come on, let's find Rory,” she took his arm and lead him deeper into the house. They walked around aimlessly, and Lorelai had to shake hands with several people on the way, that she apparently was supposed to know. When two overly perfumed women engaged Lorelai into small talk over Rory and the DAR, whatever the heck that was, Luke escaped looking for a decent drink. He found his way back into the living room and spotted a bar across the room. He ordered a beer and looked around when a hand grabbed him by his jacket and pulled him into a hug. “Thank god, someone sane!”

“Rory! Happy birthday,” Luke congratulated her, and Rory released Luke out of her embrace just to dive under his arm and step behind him, peering around Luke’s shoulder to make sure the coast was clear.

“Are you okay?” Luke questioned her odd behavior and saw how Emily disappeared into another room, accompanied by a swanky-looking gentleman.

“Remember how Grandma wanted to start the party at five and Mom insisted on seven?” Rory asked sounding annoyed. “Yeah?” Luke replied and knew whatever was coming next will upset Lorelai and therefore upset him. “And how Grandma coaxed me into being here at four because of the hair and the make-up and that I should be here to oversee her preparations?” Luke nodded and Rory frowned, “Well, guess when ‘her’ guests arrived?”

Luke gave her an apologetic look and Rory rubbed tiredly over her face. “She had two hours of showing me off to all the ‘right’ people and now she’s still sending them methodically after me. She even managed to keep Logan away from me, who I’ve only heard is here somewhere.”

“Aw geez, Rory, I’m so sorry. Can I do something?” Luke offered and felt sad that Rory wasn’t having fun at her 21st birthday party, then remembered something. “Oh, here. I've got something for you.” Luke searched his jacket pockets for a small jewelry gift box and handed it to her.

“Really?” Rory looked surprised and opened it. “Luke!” she gasped emotionally and couldn’t believe her eyes. The box contained a fine pearl necklace, most likely from the nineteen hundreds.

“It was my mother’s. Liz can't wear it ‘cause her neck's too fat, but your neck looks, you know, not fat. It was sitting around in my drawer, so I thought, ‘hey, give it to Rory’. You know you're lucky ‘cause Caesar’s birthday is next month, and I know he likes pearls, so...”

Rory chuckled at Luke’s nonchalance but knew how much the necklace represented. “Thank you,” Rory said and hugged Luke once again.

“You're welcome.” Luke blushed a little and pushed his hands into his pockets to keep himself grounded.

A lady approached Rory curiously and spied over her shoulder. “I saw a jewelry box and I couldn't help myself. What did you get?” Rory opened the box again and showed her gift off with a big smile. “Oh, it's fantastic,” the woman sighed in adoration.

“It's from Luke, my stepfather-to-be,” Rory announced proudly, and this time Luke blushed furiously. For the second time that day he felt awfully fatherly. A feeling he so wanted to get used to.

“Well, you have exquisite taste, Luke. I'm Tweeny Halpern,” the woman introduced herself and Rory explained, “I know Tweeny from the DAR.”

“What's the DAR?” Luke asked seriously wondering what that dubious organization was all about, but instead of an answer Tweeny guffawed and walked off shaking with laughter. Luke looked after her, shaking his head, “I'm killing with that line tonight.”

Rory smiled at his innocence and then spotted her mother accompanied by Logan making their way towards the bar. “Mom!” she flung her arms around Lorelai and they hugged tightly. “Hey kid, nice party!”

Rory rolled her eyes over Lorelai’s shoulders, so she couldn’t see, but Logan caught the annoyed look in her eyes. They released each other and Logan greeted her with a quick peck on her cheek. He still felt uncomfortable in front of Rory’s parents.

“Is anybody from Stars Hollow here?” Rory asked and looked sadly around. Apparently nobody felt comfortable enough to make an appearance and Rory’s heart sank a little.

“I saw Lane and Zack, with Paris and her boyfriend,” Lorelai said and gestured somewhere in the direction of the patio.

“Oh, good! I’ll go and find them.” She took Logan by the hand and they left. Lorelai smiled after the kids, who technically weren’t kids anymore, and said, “She looks happy. I know it’s not what she wanted but this is nice. My mother did a good job.”

Luke cringed but nodded. He didn’t want to spoil Lorelai’s good mood. If Rory wanted her to know how she really felt, it was up to her to say something.

A waiter passed them and Lorelai’s stomach rumbled approvingly. “Food!” she exclaimed, and they went into the dining room, where the buffet was built up. While Lorelai generously laded a plate, Luke was more careful in his selection. Mostly because he didn’t recognize half of the stuff laid out on big silver platters.

He eyed a crumbly kind of cheese on top of what appeared to be glazed tomato on bruschetta pan suspiciously.

“Just take it, Luke. You are holding up the line!”

Luke’s head snapped up in surprise. “Sookie!” For once he was very glad to see the small woman. She was accompanied by Jackson and they greeted each other affectionately. They joined Lorelai who had claimed an empty standing table and the four friends fell into amiable chatter. The more of the ‘high society’ guests were starting to leave, the more familiar faces from Stars Hollow popped up. Lorelai was very glad they came, although late, but they came, nonetheless.

Lorelai noticeably relaxed and started to enjoy herself when Luke suddenly turned to stone next to her. She followed his angry stare and her own jaw dropped.

“Hey Lor!” the blonde man grinned widely and leisurely walked up to her, arms wide open. He completely ignored her shocked expression and the people she was with and wrapped her into a tight hug. He pressed a lingering kiss to her cheek and released her but didn’t take his hand off her arm. “It’s good seeing you! You look…” He gave her a once over and his cheery smile wavered for a second when he noticed her baby bump. “… pregnant? Wow! When did that happen?” His smile was back and blazing.

Lorelai finally found her voice and stammered, “Christopher – what are you doing here?”

“Celebrating! This is a party, isn’t it?” Chris winked at her and snatched a champagne flute from a passing waiter, removing his hand from her arm. Lorelai noticed that his sudden movement had him waver a little. He was most definitely drunk, she thought. “So, what’s new with you? Apart from the obvious,” he asked cheerily.

Luke stepped closer behind Lorelai and placed his hand on the small of her back. He didn’t care if it looked possessive and neither did Lorelai, as she leaned into his touch. Her throat felt dry and she had no idea how to react. She could feel Luke’s fury radiating from him and felt trapped between the two men. She cleared her throat and pushed a curl behind her ear to regain some composure.

By doing so her engagement ring glittered in the dimmed light and before she could say something Chris’ got a hold of her hand and turned it over. “Engaged also?” He turned towards Luke for the first time, “Someone was in a hurry to mark his territory.” His voice was ice cold, but when he looked back at Lorelai his warm smile was back. Luke clenched his fists and almost growled at Chris.

Sookie nudged Jackson in the ribs and nodded towards a group of people cheering. “Oh, hey, look – Kirk is showing off how many Cherry tomatoes fit in his mouth!” She basically dragged Jackson away, who was still clueless about what was going on. Luke envied him.

“Strange that Rory didn’t mention any of this. Although I got the impression that something was wrong, now with me paying Yale… I take it she doesn’t approve?”

“Chris!” Lorelai hissed. Her bewilderment was replaced by rage. “This has nothing – this is not -!” Lorelai hated not finding the right words. There were just too many things she wanted to say at once and she could barely refrain from slapping him.

Lorelai’s anger completely flew over Chris’ head and he asked gleefully “Speaking of which, where is that daughter of ours?”

“Patio,” Lorelai answered through gritted teeth and Chris staggered away.

Lorelai took a deep breath and turned around to face Luke who had turned into a statue. The only sign of him being human was his rapid heaving chest. He was obviously fuming.

“Luke, I’m so sorry. I had no idea he was coming. You have to believe me.” Lorelai searched his face for any kind of response. Luke took several steps backward, needing some space.

“Luke, please don’t leave!” Lorelai begged, glued to her spot. Last time she had chased after him it didn’t end well, and she didn’t know how to react this time.

Luke didn’t look at her, held up a hand to signal her she shouldn’t follow and turned, “I just need a moment.” He walked away in the opposite direction to Chris.

Lorelai bit her lip and held back her tears. Laughter waved over to her and she wanted to join Sookie and the gang but didn’t find the energy. Instead, she went towards the kitchen, which was her preferred hiding place.

Not even five minutes later Emily walked into the kitchen to check if enough salmon puffs were left to rotate platters for the next hour. She was surprised to see Lorelai standing at the kitchen isle fiddling with the candles on the birthday cake. “Lorelai, how's the party going so far?” Emily asked intending to make polite chitchat.

Lorelai turned around slowly, her eyes glinting dangerously. “Seems to be a big hit,” she sneered and searched Emily’s face for clues but didn’t find anything.

“Where's Luke? I hope he didn't get lost somewhere,” Emily commented. She had noticed that the two of them seemed to be glued together and she was surprised to find Lorelai alone and, in the kitchen, no less.

“Oh, no, he went for a walk to cool off.” Lorelai bit her cheek, trying to hold her temper.

Emily gave her a puzzled look, not understanding why Luke would have the need to do that.

“Did you invite Christopher?” Lorelai blurted out and her eyes shot daggers at Emily, who seemed to be getting uncomfortable under Lorelai’s intense stare.

“Of course, I invited Christopher. He’s Rory’s father and it’s her birthday.”

“Oh, my god!” Lorelai screamed and clenched her fists. “This is your stupid vow renewal all over again! Are you trying to kill me?!”

Emily, shocked at her daughter’s outburst and even more confused by it, raised her voice equally, “What on earth are you talking about?!”

“Christopher! He’s here, and you orchestrated it!” Lorelai shouted. Her eyes were wide, and she was almost shaking. Emily’s eyebrows shot up and she asked frantically, “He’s here? I thought he was on a business trip to Mexico. Or was it Montreal?”

“What? You didn’t know he was coming?” Lorelai almost believed her mother.

“No, Lorelai, I swear. I gave you the complete list of everyone who RSVPd. He said he wasn’t coming.”

“Then what is he doing here? And why is he drunk?”

Emily didn’t know what to say to that and was about to ask if she should have him removed from the party, but a loud gasp and the swinging kitchen doors interrupted her. Sookie burst into the room and shouted over her shoulder, “Found her!” then turned towards Lorelai with a determined look, “You better come quickly.”

“Oh no, what now?” Lorelai groaned and she followed Sookie, Emily wasn’t far behind.

\---

Luke had blindly walked away from the party and found himself in a part of the house he had never been before. The room was dark, and he knew he probably wasn’t supposed to be in there, but he needed a moment to breathe. Through the windows, he spotted the pool, another part of the mansion he had never seen before and wondered if Lorelai had used it often while growing up. He sure would have loved to have a pool but had to make do with Stars Hollow’s mostly icy lake.

Like the living or the dining room, this room too had doors that opened to the patio. Luke swung it open and stepped out to stand by the edge of the pool, watching the movement of the water.

The pool house on the other side was illuminated and modern music blasted through the closed windows. That must be where all the ‘young’ guests had disappeared to. To his left, he saw the open patio, where guests were mingling but nobody was coming over here and he found the silence relaxing.

He was mostly upset with himself for letting Christopher getting under his skin. He didn’t know why he let him get to him. It’s not like there was still something between Lorelai and Chris, so it wasn’t jealousy. He just couldn’t stand the guy. Chris’ childish behavior and selfishness wasn’t something Luke understood. In his eyes, Chris was a spoiled brat that never grew up and never faced the consequences of his actions.

He hadn’t noticed the person stepping out of the pool house and walking around towards him.

“It won’t last, you know,” Chris said bitterly, standing a few feet away.

Luke took a deep breath and closed his eyes but the fists in his pockets trembled. He wished he could make Christopher disappear with a snap of his fingers.

“She’ll get bored of you and drop you like a hot potato. It’s not like she’s never done that before. And she surely doesn’t need you to raise the child. She’ll make sure you have no say in it. She’s never needed anyone, and you have nothing to offer. It’s better to realize that now and let her go.”

Luke shifted his gaze from the calming water to Chris’ face. “You clearly haven’t,” he stated calmly, surprised that his voice wasn’t shaking like his whole body was.

Chris took another step forward and snarled, “I promised her a long time ago, that I won’t go anywhere.”

“Then I can only repeat my question, where the hell have you been all this time?!” Luke had raised his voice unintentionally and knew that the people on the patio closest to them would’ve clearly heard him.

“Lorelai and Rory are _my_ family - mine! It’s none of your business!” Chris shouted back clearly not caring who could hear him. Propriety be damned.

“It _is_ my business because they are _my_ family too, and I’m so done picking up after you!” Luke thundered, his fists no longer hidden in his pockets.

Chris huffed, making a ‘ts’ sound, then sneered, “Nobody asked you to.”

“How would you know, huh?! How would you know what Lorelai asks of me? Or what Rory needs? You never stuck around long enough. Do us all a favor and go back to the miserable hole you crawled out of.”

“Or what?” Chris took a wider stance and held his head high, glaring down at Luke.

Luke cocked his head and wondered if that was supposed to be a challenge. There was that childish behavior again but before Luke could answer Chris swung a punch in Luke’s direction. He missed by a mile, not only because Luke ducked skillfully, but also because he drunkenly staggered forward and his movement was somewhat slow and uncoordinated.

Luke knew that he should put an end to this right there and then, but his anger took over and he grabbed Chris around the middle wrestling him to the ground. Chris although taller wasn’t necessarily heavier than Luke and the fight was pretty equal until Chris lost his footing and fell backward taking Luke down with him. The fight became noisy and they definitely drew an audience.

Chris elegantly performed a backward roll on the floor and even managed to kick Luke somewhere near the groin while doing so. Luke groaned in pain and scrambled to his feet a tad too late. Chris was already up and had his fists ready, punching Luke hard in the face. He hit Luke close to his right eye, making him see dancing stars for a second.

Chris took the opportunity to land another punch to Luke’s left side, knocking the wind out of him, then grabbed onto Luke’s arms, trying to wrestle him to the ground again. The two men spun around several times. Luke managed to trip Chris over his foot and the man stumbled. Luke used the momentum to swing Chris around by the shoulders with as much force as he could muster and then let go. The blonde man catapulted back into the pool with a loud splash.

Luke wrapped his right hand over his bruised ribs and stood bent over with his left hand on his knee, trying to take deep breaths. Chris swam to the other end of the pool and climbed out in front of the pool house where Rory apparently had witnessed the scene with many of her friends. “Pool party!” shouted one guy and several others followed him jumping in “Finn, no!” Rory screamed too late, looking shocked from her dripping father in front of her to her bleeding stepfather on the other side of the pool. Chris pushed passed her into the pool house and as Rory spotted Lorelai appearing on the terrace, followed him inside.

Lorelai ran over to Luke and took his face in her hands. She looked awfully worried and he only then realized the throbbing pain coming from his brow bone and that something was dripping from his jaw. Lorelai took him firmly by the elbow and led him into the room he had previously come through and pressed him into a seat. Lorelai said something to him he didn’t register and left in a hurry. Luke carefully touched the pulsating pain and when he looked back at his hand concluded that he indeed was bleeding quite heavily.

Lorelai was back within seconds and pressed a cold damp cloth to his face. The room around him seemed to sway a little and he closed his eyes leaning into Lorelai’s touch.

“Luke, look at me,” Lorelai ordered frantically, fearing he was losing consciousness. Her fingers trembled and the blood made her queasy. “Luke, do you know where you are?”

Luke opened his eyes and a smile tugged at the corner of his mouth. He had never seen Lorelai seriously worried about his wellbeing and although she wasn’t doing too good a job at providing first aid, it was endearing.

Now that the room was illuminated, he noticed the dark wooden bookcases that engulfed the entire room. An old-fashioned fireplace was located opposite the door he initially had entered through and several large but comfortable leather armchairs where placed around it. In one he was sitting now. “Library?” answered but since he wasn’t entirely sure this room was considered a library it sounded more like a question.

Lorelai obviously wasn’t satisfied with that and insisted, “Where?”

“Your parents’ house,” Luke answered quickly, but Lorelai wasn’t convinced. “Okay, and what day is today?”

Luke rolled his eyes but regretted the movement instantly as a sharp pain pierced his right eye and he winced. “It’s Rory’s birthday,” he groaned and hoped the interrogation was over.

“Alright, and what is twenty-three multiplied by fifty-eight?”

“Seriously?!” Luke frowned and closed his eyes again, leaning back in the chair.

“Yeah, never mind, I think you are fine, apart from your bleeding eyebrow.” Lorelai patted his face some more, her utter disgust at the sight of the now stained cloth written clearly all over her face. Luke mumbled something and Lorelai stopped the dabbing. “What?”

“I said, one thousand three hundred thirty-four.” A proud smile spread over his face and he beamed at Lorelai, who was lost for words for a second before she swatted his chest and called him a show-off.

Luke held her gently around the hips and pulled her closer. “Come here,” he murmured and tried to settle her on his lap, but Lorelai placed both hands firmly against his chest to keep him away. “Ew, no! You’re still bleeding!” she grimaced but sat down on his thighs anyway. “Then let me,” Luke ordered and snatched the cloth out of her hand, pressing it against his browbone.

“We should put a band-aid on it,” Lorelai concluded and checked the first aid kit she had brought earlier for anything suitable. She held up a small package of the regular-sized ones and Luke chuckled, “I don’t think that will do, besides – I only like the Barbie ones.” Lorelai laughed and tossed the package back in but didn’t find any other sizes.

“Just gimme that gauze package and the tape and I’ll manage myself.”

Lorelai grabbed the two things and led Luke to the nearest bathroom. She quickly washer her hands, shuddering at the red water running down the sink and left Luke behind. Back in the living room she headed to the bar and filled a tumbler with a good measure of whiskey. It wasn’t her preferred drink, not even in the slightest but it did the trick. The amber liquid burnt down her throat and she shuddered again.

“Mom, are you okay? Where’s Luke?”

Lorelai pushed her worries and anger aside and plastered a broad smile on her face before turning around. “I’m fine, Luke is playing doctor in the bathroom. Where is…”

“Gone,” Rory reassured her. “Grandma made sure of it. Logan took his friends home and Grandpa got rid of everyone else.”

“So, who’s still here?” Lorelai filled her glass again, decided to take the bottle as well, and headed to a couch that was pushed against the wall.

“We are,” Rory laughed and sat down opposite her on the coffee table, not caring if her grandmother disapproved.

“Now I know how you must have felt after the party brawl at Kyle’s house,” Lorelai grinned and sipped the whiskey.

Rory lifted an eyebrow, “Awfully guilty and partially responsible?”

“No, awfully exhilarated and partially aroused!”

“Oh my god!” Rory grimaced in disgust and shock.

“What? Two men just fought over me. There should be poems written about it. I’ll dream of this tonight. They’ll be in tights and fencing,” Lorelai mused and had to giggle at the imagination of Luke in a Musketeer costume.

“You’re sick!” Rory muttered. “How do you even know they were fighting over you?”

Lorelai shrugged, “Just a hunch,” then grinned widely. “Luke would look good with sideburns and a mustache.”

“No, he wouldn’t,” Luke frowned at Lorelai and sat down on the sofa next to her, wincing at the movement. Rory observed him closely and felt awful. The bruising reached from his temple down to his cheekbone around his eye, which was heavily swollen, and therefore remained half-closed. The folded gauze he had taped over his brow and the edge of his eye kept the bleeding at bay but made the purple bruising look even worse in contrast to the white material. The way he moved and uncomfortable sat on the couch was further proof that there was more damage done than just the visible injury. She couldn’t believe that her own father had done this and got angry anew.

Luke noticed her tense expression and started to apologize, “Rory, I’m really sorry. I -,” but Rory raised a hand to cut him off. “You don’t have to apologize,” she said firmly.

“But I ruined your party,” Luke argued and gestured to the almost empty house. The only people left were some maids and servants cleaning up.

“You only made it more memorable,” Rory laughed.

“You’re - not angry?” Luke asked confused. If someone behaved the way he did at his party he’d give them hell. Rory’s reaction was more than surprising.

“Oh, I’m angry. I’m furious. But not with you, Luke.”

Luke hung his head in shame. He didn’t deserve Rory’s forgiveness. “It wasn’t all his fault…”

“I know. But it’s my birthday so I get to choose who to blame,” Rory commented and folded her arms decisively.

Emily entered from the dining room, “Well, that was – interesting,” she said with a poignant look at Luke, who now wished he could make himself disappear with the snap of a finger. He stared down at his shoes and mumbled, “I’m so very sorry.”

Emily pursed her lips, “Yes, well… Rory, I was wondering if you’d like to take your cake home?”

Luke groaned, realizing that they hadn’t even gotten to cut the cake and he felt even more ashamed. Rory agreed to wrap the cake up and Richard entered from the hallway, announcing that he had sent everyone home. He turned to Luke and put his business voice on, “Now, Luke, if you’d like to press charges, I’d recommend you do it as soon as possible.”

“Press charges?! Richard!” Emily shrieked frantically at Richard’s outrageous idea.

“Yes, Emily. Look at the man! He’s been assaulted. On _our_ property!”

Emily was horrified at the thought of police involvement but did as Richard said, and took a good look at Luke and gasped, “Lorelai! Shouldn’t he be in a hospital?”

“Why do you say it like it’s my fault?” Lorelai protested and Rory chuckled, “ _You_ said they were fighting over you, which would technically make it your fault.”

“Not now,” Lorelai hissed angrily at Rory’s wicked sense of humor.

“I’m fine, really,” Luke assured to no one in particular, feeling even more uncomfortable as the center of attention of the Gilmore family. “Painkiller and a bed and I’ll be as good as new.”

“I’ll see you out then,” Richard offered and ushered everyone out the door.

Rory drove the three of them to Stars Hollow, leaving the Jeep behind.

\---

Rory dropped Luke and Lorelai off at Luke’s and returned to the house alone. She couldn’t believe they were still living in the apartment, although almost all the refurbishments were finished, and the house didn’t even smell like paint anymore.

Luke had cleaned himself up a little more and changed the gauze. He also took two – make it three - painkillers and dropped dead tired onto the bed, not even bothering putting on pajamas.

Lorelai looked at him and bit her lip, “You look awful!”

Luke had already closed his eyes but grinned lopsidedly, “Gee, thanks. That’s what every man wants to hear when he’s lying half-naked in bed.”

In any other situation, Lorelai would have laughed but the sight wasn’t funny at all. He had a fist-sized purple mark on his lower left ribs, several smaller bruises on his arms where Chris had held onto him and a large red bruise on his upper left thigh, that looked like a boot print.

Lorelai’s silence worried Luke and he opened his eyes to look at her. He noticed that she was holding back tears and reached out to her. “It’s not that bad. The real victim here is my suit. It’s totally ruined,” he smiled and gestured towards the sofa where he had deposited the garments. The trousers and jacket were dirty, ripped, and had scuff marks all over them as well as dried blood on the collar.

Lorelai gave him a weak smile and nodded, then moved to the bathroom herself. By the time she slipped under the covers, Luke was already asleep. She cuddled up to his side, careful to not touch any bruises.

“Luke?” she whispered to see if he was truly asleep and he hummed in response. “Next time someone uses you as a punching bag, fight back.”

Luke wrapped his arms around her and drew her close, murmuring into her hair, “I did. I threw him in the pool.”

“I know you can do better than that,” Lorelai teased.

“Hm. I don’t wanna be like my dad,” Luke said and with the next deep breath, he was asleep.

Lorelai was taken by surprise. She had only ever heard good things about Luke’s father. Nobody had ever mentioned that he was violent. Maybe one day she’d ask him what he meant.

\---

**WATERBURY – FURNITURE STORE – 12 th OCTOBER**

The bruises on his body were healing and the one around his eye had turned into lovely shades of purples, greens, and yellows. He was glad that the laceration didn’t seem to scar. He didn’t want to give Christopher the satisfaction of having left a mark on him for life.

While his body was recovering, he had almost gotten his head ripped off the other day.

Luke had paid Tom and the crew a big bonus to clean up and finish a few days sooner than planned. He wanted to surprise Lorelai with the house all done and ready to move in. He even had moved his grandmother’s bed set into the bedroom because she had once told him she liked it.

What was supposed to be their first night together in their new home ended with a heated argument and him sleeping at his apartment.

Which is why he found himself at Raymour & Flanigan Furniture and Mattress Store in Waterbury on that fine sunny afternoon.

Lorelai was lying on a mattress, testing its firmness by wriggling and squishing the material. “How will you choose the right mattress if you won’t lie on them?” she asked Luke, who was standing a few feet away, his arms firmly folded over his chest.

“I’m not lying on this! It is infested. It’s a breeding ground for fungus. God knows who was lying on it before you.”

“Luke, we’re buying a bed and we’re buying one today! I’m not sleeping another night on a bed where fat baby angels stare at me,” she shot back and moved to the next mattress in line.

Luke followed her and sighed, “Will you ever get over the cherubs?”

Lorelai scoffed, “I’d need to have my memory wiped to get over it but since the neuralyzer doesn’t really exist, I probably won’t.”

“Aw geez.” Luke hung his head and hoped the new bed would stop her mocking and his suffering. They had already chosen a gorgeous frame that even he had to admit was nice. He had given her complete freedom to choose whatever she liked and thankfully she had taken his preferences into consideration.

Lorelai bounced off the bed and grabbed Luke’s arm, dragging him to the next mattress. “At least sit on it, please!” she begged and tugged at his arm, but Luke snatched his hand away, “NO!”

“Luke! I can’t do this by myself. What if my choice gives you a terrible backache?”

“No mattress has ever given me a backache,” he argued, standing his ground.

“Stop being so stubborn!” Lorelai tried pushing him back onto a mattress by his shoulders without much prevail. Luke stepped quickly aside and away from the germ-ridden infestations. “Get away from me!” he called over his shoulder, but Lorelai chased him down the aisle.

\---

Half an hour later Lorelai lay on a mattress with a satisfied grin on her face. She turned her head to look at Luke who angrily stared at the ceiling and tried to touch as few of the bed as possible while in a horizontal position. “Remind me to burn these clothes when we get home,” he scowled and almost shuddered.

Lorelai rolled over, propped her head up on one hand and run the other hand from Luke’s collar down his torso. “Now, Luke,” she whispered and hooked one finger into the waistband of his jeans and tugged lightly. “In which one would you like to do dirty things to me?”

Luke tried to hide a grin and covered her hand with his before she could go any further. His gaze moved from her eyes down to her lips and back up. “I might have a favorite,” he admitted and quickly glanced around if the store clerk was still around, then pulled Lorelai on top of himself and kissed her hungrily.

They parted and Lorelai beamed down at him, “My, my Lucas, misbehaving in the bedding section, she chided and sat up, straddling him.

Luke sat up as well, swung his legs off the bed, keeping Lorelai on his lap. “You are a bad influence,” he grinned, grabbed her by the buttocks and stood up. Lorelai squealed in delight. “Now to answer your first question,” he walked to the opposite side and down the aisle, Lorelai clung to him, wrapping her arms and legs tightly around his body. “This one I think will do nicely,” he laid her down carefully and rolled over her to lie by her side.

“Smooth move, Danes,” Lorelai nodded approvingly. “And you’re in luck, this is actually my number two.”

“Let me guess,” Luke knitted his eyebrows. “Your number one is that bouncy house over there,” he glanced towards a mattress at the end of the row and Lorelai nodded again.

“Admit now you’re glad you tested them!” she poked his chest and Luke caught her by the wrist pulling her in for another kiss. “Never,” he said with a stern look before the corner of his lips twitched upwards.

“Alright, Mr. Danes, I think we have a winner. Now you better go and buy me that bed, before this goes any further and we have to christen it right here and now,” Lorelai lifted an eyebrow provocatively and Luke jumped up within a split second. She didn’t have to ask him twice.

\---

The truck came to a slithering halt in front of their house. Luke practically plummeted out and yanked the tailboard down. Lorelai had rounded the truck in an equal rush and pressed herself against Luke, pinning him to the back of the car. Her eyes were dark with desire and her mouth was on his before he could react. They kissed each other frantically, hands roaming over bodies.

“What abou…” Luke managed to whisper breathlessly but was silenced by more kisses. “Later,” Lorelai answered. “We can bid farewell to the old one first.” With that, she grabbed him by the zipper of his jacket and dragged him towards the entrance. It was a miracle that they made it fully clothed into the house.

\---

**HOUSE – 13 th OCTOBER**

The next morning Luke built up the bed while Lorelai was at work. She wanted to join him after lunch to pack up their things at the apartment and move them finally back to where they belonged, but a conference group checked in earlier than planned and Michel had called for backup.

So Luke was left alone to complete said task. He didn’t truly mind. Lorelai’s things were gathered rather quickly since they stuck out in his manly flat like a sore thumb. It was hard to believe that they had shared this tiny space for four months and didn’t kill each other. It was probably a good sign.

His own packing didn’t take much longer. He mainly packed the clothes he needed, toiletries, cooking utensils he knew Lorelai didn’t have, and some other random objects he felt he needed like his alarm clock.

It took only one truckload to move everything to his new home. He was aware that he hadn’t really moved out of his apartment just yet, but since he was there almost every single day, he didn’t see the need to completely empty the apartment anyway. He could move other stuff over time, he told himself and began to unpack the clothes first. It was weird to have a walk-in closet and seeing his wardrobe on display like that. Lorelai had already occupied most of the left side of the little room, so he had stowed his on the right. He looked from her colorful side of dresses and blouses to his plaid shirts and jeans. The contrast of their lives couldn’t be more highlighted than that.

A content smile spread over his face and he took a deep breath. His fingers glided over silky materials of her more elaborate dresses and he glanced over to his side where the lack of formal wear was suddenly very prominent. After he had ruined his only suit beyond repair, he should probably get a new one. Maybe even two.

Luke stepped out of the dressing room to unpack his toiletries. They each had a sink and a mirror cabinet. While Lorelai’s side was already cluttered, his had nothing apart from a toothbrush and even after adding the few items he had brought, it seemed awfully empty. He had to remind himself that this was his space and it could be as empty of full as he wanted it to be. ‘No pressure, Luke. This is your home,’ he thought and headed back into the bedroom. For the first time in almost two decades he lived in a house again and it would take some time getting used to.

So far he had just occupied the spaces that Lorelai had clearly left for him, the right part of the closet, the right sink, the lower two drawers of the dressing cabinet, but since he had built the bed only that morning he felt it was his time to choose a side.

Not that there was much of a choice. In the four months, they had lived together it became clear, that his side of the bed was the left one and that’s precisely where he placed his alarm clock and the book he had been reading. He had also brought the framed picture of him and Lorelai at the Firelight Festival. Rachel had made him a postcard-sized copy and although he didn’t think it was a particularly flattering image, he treasured it.

After finishing up he wandered out of the bedroom and opened the door to the right that leads into the small nursery. The room had the same petrol blue walls as their bedroom, which made it due to its size rather dark. In order to brighten it, Lorelai had hung cream-colored curtains and an armchair for nursing in a similar shade. The small chest of drawers that will also work as a changing table and the matching wardrobe were wooden in a lovely shade of beige. Several other baby-related items like the car seat where lined up along the wall. Luke couldn’t wait to bring life to this room. For the first time in almost two decades, he had a family again and it filled him with no end of joy. Struck with an idea he left the room and grabbed his car keys.

\---

**STARS HOLLOW – 17 th OCTOBER**

Time flew by and October was already halfway gone. The air in the morning had that cool crispy feeling and the leaves were turning golden all over the country. Even though it was far too early for it, Lorelai couldn’t wait for the first snow. Autumn and winter in Stars Hollow were the busiest seasons tourism wise and it kept her rather occupied.

Luke and she had managed in the meantime to schedule an appointment at the bank to open a new joint bank account. They had agreed that since they were both business owners, they’d keep those affairs completely separate even after the wedding. The ‘family’ account will be used to pay all their bills, insurances, mortgage and so on.

Luke had to change his address as well and they went to a solicitor to arrange the paperwork. After several missed appointments due to one or the other being held up at work they finally made it and the little man with grey hair and huge spectacles released a long breath he had been holding. “Congratulations, you are now co-owners!” he had said and shaken their hands across the mahogany desk.

He had several times pointed out that it would have been so much simpler if they were married already and Luke was so close to just march down to the registrar’s office and sign the damn papers, but Lorelai didn’t have any of it.

Her and Sookie’s wedding preparations were far too advanced by this time to elope. Luke had long given up interfering with the wedding plans, Sookie had made it _very_ clear that his opinion was not in demand. Luke knew that he didn’t have an opinion on most matters anyway but couldn’t help but feeling a little left out.

Nevertheless, it came as a surprise when one evening Lorelai arrived at the diner holding a huge box and announced proudly, “Well, we're done!”

“We're done with what?” Luke asked. He was in the midst of closing up for the night, rag still in hand.

“With the wedding preparations. We're all done,” she beamed, dropped her parcels on the counter and took a seat.

“What?” He knew they were venturing out again that day but hadn’t expected them to make that much progress, or any progress at all. So far they had returned from their missions either agitated or depressed.

“I just dropped off a deposit check to the caterer, and I brought you some duck-sausage rolls, by the way.” She handed him the smaller container that sat on top and Luke took it, still stunned, he repeated her words, “Duck-Sausage rolls?”

“I know. They sounded weird to me, too, but they're incredible,” Lorelai moaned, still tasting them on her lips.

Luke looked from the take-out container to the other large box and then to Lorelai, knitting his eyebrows, “I don't understand. How did this happen? The other day you were still discussing whether or not you want an outdoor wedding.”

“I know. But then Sookie and I went to check out these invitations, you know, and right next door, there was this little bridal shop, and we thought, ‘Oh, we'll just go in, look around, you know no big deal’, just girl fun, right? And I went in, and I turned around, and there it was. The perfect dress.” Lorelai’s eyes began to sparkle, and she started to describe it in much detail as if Luke had any idea what her words meant. All he heard was that there was some white in it somewhere.

“- and it was my size, and it was on sale, and so I bought it, and they were running a special, so the alterations are free and from the minute I bought the dress, everything else fell into place,” Lorelai finished the longest sentence ever spoken, sucking in some air.

Luke was afraid to ask but did anyway, “What does that mean?”

“Well, the dress is strapless, and since we were talking about June, it fits perfectly to a summer wedding. And summer means daisies, so flower choice done. And we went into the stationery store, and there was the perfect daisy invitation, which I know sounds a little girly, but, seriously, there are no macho wedding invitations, so please just give me this one, okay?” Lorelai did her best puppy eyes and Luke agreed to whatever she was rambling on about. “So I bought the invitations, the place is running a special. They print the invites and mail them for you and handle the RSVP list, so that's done. Then we go to get some coffee, and in the window of the coffee shop, there is a picture of a beautiful rose-covered church. And I thought, ‘Gee, that's pretty. I wonder where that is’. And do you know where it is?”

Luke could have answered ‘on the moon’, it didn’t matter. Lorelai was on a roll. “Right around the corner from the coffee shop! So we went in and talked to Pastor Todd. And the church is perfect. And out back, there's a separate function hall with these floor-to-ceiling windows and doors that open out. And behind the hall is this old carousel.”

This time Luke had to interrupt to clarify he had heard right, “A carousel?”

“From 1850. And it should be fully restored and working by June 3rd, which, by the way, is the date of our wedding.”

“June 3rd?” Luke’s jaw dropped.

“Yes. Which is also miraculously a date that absolutely no one in Stars Hollow has a conflict with, and the Pastor was running a special too. I rented the church and he gave me the hall for half price, and he threw in the use of the carrousel for nothing. And his sister runs a catering company, and Sookie blessed it, and so basically that's it, we're done!”

“Huh!” was all Luke could manage with the load of information she had just dumped on him. He also knew that she will have to repeat everything again, much slower to him, so he had a chance to catch up.

Lorelai didn’t even notice his flabbergasted expression. She was in her own dream world for the moment, high on euphoria. “It was so weird how this happened, you know. It's like the dress was a sign or something.”

Luke’s only way of coping with her crazy spells was by focusing on reality, so he said, “There are no signs.”

Lorelai shook her head at his rational comment and by doing so, caught a glimpse of the environment. She gasped loudly, “Oh, my god!”

“What!?” Luke slid around the counter to stand by her side.

“Oh, my god! It started snowing. It started snowing right as I started talking about signs. That, my friend, is a sign,” Lorelai pointed a finger at him but Luke wasn’t that easily convinced. “That is not a sign. That is weather and you can’t really call that snow,” he motioned towards the slush that fell from the sky.

“No, this is more than weather. This is fate,” Lorelai insisted.

“June 3rd, huh?”

“June 3rd,” Lorelai confirmed and kissed him lovingly. “Okay, I better get this back home before the snow gets any worse.” She moved to pick up the box, but Luke placed a firm hand on it.

“Wait for me. I’m done here in five minutes. I can drive us home.”

“I like the sound of that! Can I have a muffin while I wait?”

Luke nodded towards the muffin tray and said, “Go nuts,” to which Lorelai grimaced, “I’m not a big fan of your Fall Nut Muffins.”

“Not what I meat but which ones don’t you like? Banana Walnut or Pumpkin Pecan?”

Lorelai further scrunched up her face, “Both – but then again, I am pregnant and my taste buds like kale at the moment. I don’t even trust myself anymore.”

“Well, that’s good for you,” Luke gave her hand a squeeze and moved around the corner to pick up the tray cover. “So, which muffin do your taste buds like then?”

Lorelai contemplated for a while, “Hmm, do you have something – plain?”

Luke gave her a bemused look before offering a whole grain muffin, which Lorelai reluctantly accepted.

“I’ll have to have a stern word with your son, once he’s here about what is _good food_!”

Luke watched her pick the muffin apart and smiled to himself. He had to celebrate the small victories. Then he moved on to finish up the cleaning.

\---

Luke parked the truck behind Lorelai’s Jeep and procured an umbrella from somewhere behind his seat. The downpour had turned from the slosh to heavy rain to almost hail over the course of their short drive from the diner to the house. Luke opened the car door for Lorelai and held the umbrella up so she could step under it including the box, which Luke in the meantime had figured out contained indeed the wedding dress.

To his surprise Lorelai jumped out of the truck, leaving the box behind. Before Luke could say anything, she had closed the door behind her and tugged on his hand. “I almost forgot, I have a surprise for you!” she smiled from ear to ear and led him across the lawn. They had to walk pressed close together in order to stay under the protection of the umbrella. Lorelai stopped in front of the mailbox and with a loud, “Ta-da!” announced – something.

Luke squinted at it through the rain. It poured down that hard that although they stood only a few feet away it looked blurry. He lifted an eyebrow, “You – painted the mailbox?”

Lorelai rolled her eyes at his lack of enthusiasm and gestured towards the box, “Take a closer look!”

Luke reluctantly bent forward, keeping the umbrella mostly upright, he could make out the red letters on the white background. It took him another moment to decipher what was written there. While the other side still read the name ‘Gilmore’, this side donned now the word ‘Danes’. He stood back up and wrapped his free arm around Lorelai’s shoulders, leaning in for a kiss. “Thanks. When did you have time to do that?”

“Yesterday morning. You came back late and then I forgot to show you. Maybe now your mail will find its way here,” Lorelai winked at him.

Luke could only chuckle, “I appreciate your effort, but I don’t think Danny will do a better job at delivering it here.”

Lorelai waved him off, “He’ll come around. He just needs more time to warm up to his new routine…” To which Luke scoffed, “How hard can it be?!”

Lorelai shrugged and turned towards the house. She looked up at it and was suddenly overcome with happiness that they had managed to make it their home. She could have never pictured herself living in the Twickham house – or any other house for that matter.

“We should rename it,” she stated and took his arm again to walk towards the front door.

“Rename what?” Lorelai had again managed to change topics mid-conversation, confusing Luke in the process as usual.

“The house! Rory and I named it Crapshack when we first moved in, but since you have fixed every single square inch of it and now after the refurbishments, it’s not that crap anymore. It deserves a new name.”

“I see,” Luke nodded and pressed his lips together in a thin line. “Yeah, I don’t think I’m the man for the job. I leave it to you and Rory.”

“Come on, Luke! This is now your property too. You get a say,” Lorelai pushed forward. They had made it inside, and Lorelai was hanging her dripping coat. While Lorelai had kicked off her boots carelessly, Luke placed his neatly on the shoe rack under the hallway cabinet. He had also developed the habit of placing his blue hat on the foyer table along with his keys. Lorelai usually dumped her purse on the desk on the other side of the wall.

“I’m happy with a veto,” Luke shrugged, standing in the doorway towards the kitchen, sock-clad feet, hands in pockets, tousled hair. Lorelai had to admit that he looked very domestic and she liked it, she liked it very much.

“What?” Luke asked, not being able to read her lovestruck smile.

Lorelai shook herself out of her daydream before she started salivating and said, “Nothing. You just look really good.” She also liked that she could still make him blush and her smile grew wider.

Luke cleared his throat,” What do you think about a hot chocolate?”

“You _are_ the perfect man,” she sighed and followed him into the kitchen.

\---

**HOME – 30 th OCTOBER**

Two weeks later autumn had definitely taken over the town and every house was decorated in the spirit of Halloween. Except Luke’s diner of course. He had been busy making something else entirely.

“Lorelai?” Luke exclaimed, dragging a large object into the living room.

“Uh, Luke, I'm upstairs!” Lorelai’s voice rang from their bedroom.

“Yeah, uh, can you come down? I have to show you something,” Luke called nervously. He was fidgeting with the hem of his shirt.

Lorelai hesitated before shouting, “Okay. Yes, I will come down, but I'm coming down in my wedding dress.”

Luke froze in his spot, “What?! No! How’d you even fit in your dress?”

“Hey!” Lorelai sounded offended.

“You know what I mean. It's bad luck for me to see the wedding dress. Take it off!”

Lorelai moaned, “Ugh, I’m coming down now.”

“But I… Geez… I’m covering my eyes!” Luke shouted back. He covered his eyes with his left hand and heard steps on the stairs.

Lorelai gasped, “What is this!?”

Luke stood there, one hand on his face, gesturing with the other to the object next to him. “Uh… I made it.”

Lorelai walked up to Luke and tried to pry his hand away from his eyes. “Luke, you can open your eyes. I took it off.” Luke didn’t believe her and raised his free hand to make sure. When his fingers brushed against her warm skin, he stiffened slightly. He uncovered his eyes and looked down at her in surprise. Lorelai stood in front of him dressed in nothing but lingerie. She also stood fairly close and her almost 25-week-baby-bump was only inches away. He smirked and pulled her against himself. “Much better,” he whispered in his deep voice and kissed her. Lorelai laid her arms around his neck and returned the favor but pulled away before it got too heated.

“Hold on mister. You said you made this? Like from scratch?” Her eyes swept over it again and with her mouth half-open she stared at Luke.

Luke let go of her and took a step back, scratching the back of his head in embarrassment. “Uh, yeah. I made it for you - for us - for our boy.”

Lorelai was moved to tears. She stood next to a wooden crib, painted in a bluish-grey color. It looked solid and somewhat manly. The head and footboard had some decorative carvings along the rims. “Wow. Luke – wow. It’s beautiful!” she choked and grabbed on to the railing.

“You like it? You can adjust the height of the mattress here and it opens up on this side. I also put wheels on it so we can move it around and the paint is non-toxic, baby proof, everlasting, whatever.”

She couldn’t believe the effort and precision he had put into building the crib. It must have taken him ages to complete. “When did you have time to do this?”

Luke shrugged, “I know this might come as a surprise to you, but I do have days off.”

“But we usually spend them together…” Lorelai questioned his nonchalant explanation.

“Do we? You spend every waking hour planning our wedding, a baby shower, an engagement party, my birthday - which is totally unnecessary, a thanksgiving dinner, a Christmas feast, you want to take part in every crazy town activity, AND you run an inn. I can’t even remember when we last had dinner together,” Luke ranted without meaning to.

Lorelai cringed. “I know… I’m sorry.”

Luke’s demeanor changed from being upset to worried, “You are taking on too much. You’ve already hired help at the front desk and given Michel more responsibilities, all you need to do now is actually show up less and ditch at least two festivities. Please, Lorelai, I don’t want to repeat what happened in August.”

“I know. You’re right. I just feel like I – I don’t know – like I _need_ to do all those things before we have the baby.”

“Nobody expects you to single-handedly entertain this town until we have the baby. You can do plenty of that in the future.”

“But I owe this town so much I can’t just abandon them just because it’s inconvenient to me. And what about you? You deserve a party!” Lorelai shrieked, which wasn’t something she normally did. The shrieking that is.

“Lorelai, you’re not letting anybody down, least of all me. I don’t need an engagement party and I haven’t celebrated my birthday since…” his voice trailed off as memories of his mother holding a cake with candles on it washed over him.

“Oh, Luke, I’m so sorry,” she clasped a hand over her mouth and became almost teary-eyed.

“I’m fine,” he assured her and continued, “And you’ll stop your crazy party-planning, so you’ll be fine too.” Luke tried to look her in the eye, but Lorelai stared into the distance, stroking her belly absentmindedly. “You know, when I had Rory, it turned my life completely upside down and not everything was great back then. In fact, most days I screwed up one way or another and thanks to this town we made it. I’m scared that things will change, and I hate the feeling of losing control. I like my life. I like how it is right now. I’m finally in a good place and it feels like it’s slipping away…” Lorelai involuntarily shivered and not because she was standing in the living room in nothing but her underwear.

“Hey, shh… Come here,” Luke gathered Lorelai in his arms and slung a blanket from the sofa over her shoulders. He drew calming circles on her back to soothe her, or himself, it was hard to tell. Nothing led on that Lorelai’s confession of her fears caused panic within himself. He too was scared to death of failing as a father and screw up everything in the process, but at that moment, he had to be strong for her and therefore pushed his fears aside and focused on keeping her calm. “Nothing’s gotta change. Your job, your life, it will all still be here. There will be other town festivals that need you and more events at the inn you can host. For now, you just need to take care of yourself, okay?”

You’re right. I’m sorry,” Lorelai hugged him strongly and kissed his cheek. “The crib is beautiful,” she whispered and they smiled at each other.

Later Lorelai chided herself for being so thoughtless. She wasn’t the type to feel sorry for herself or dwell on the past. And she certainly wasn’t the kind that drove crazy with hormones. She wouldn’t put Luke through this. He was right tough; she was overdoing it and she had to ease on the workload. So a plan started to formulate…

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Little side note here: I do not encourage violence as a solution to conflict!  
> Having said that, I felt it was fitting to this story for several reasons: There is this scene in season 7 where Luke and Chris have a go at each other and I feel like it is necessary for them to move on. I also need Chris to be a slightly more awful character in order for Lorelai to close that chapter in her life. In the show, there is always that 'what if' scenario floating around and when they finally got together they figured out that they don't work. In this story, there won't be any of that. Chris is well and truly in the past.
> 
> Anyway, I hope you enjoyed the fluffier parts of this chapter! Cheerio, A.


	9. To Surprise Or Not To Surprise

**SATURDAY 5 th NOVEMBER**

“And you promise there’s no surprise party?”

Lorelai closed the door behind her and hung her jacket slightly more forcefully than needed. “Cross my heart and hope to die.”

“I hate that saying,” Luke frowned which was apparently all he did that day and it started to get on Lorelai’s nerves.

“I promise,” she assured through clenched teeth and ushered him through the hallway and up to their bedroom. “Now chop-chop, get ready.”

Luke turned around halfway up and added a wrinkled nose to his knitted eyebrows. “Do I have to wear a suit?” he asked very much displeased.

“Luke, darling, you don’t have a suit,” Lorelai patted his shoulders and shoved him further along.

“Oh - right…” Maybe not owning one wasn’t as bad as he had thought but on his next step, he realized that he had no idea what else to wear to a nice restaurant and turned around again. “What do I wear then?”

Lorelai’s eyes glittered and a mean smirk appeared on her lips. “I’m so glad you ask!”

Luke’s temporary relief crumbled, “Oh, no – what did you do?”

“Don’t look at me like that! I just got you a new date outfit.”

“A date outfit?” Luke repeated, hoping she hadn’t gone out and gotten him a new suit behind his back. Although he hated shopping for clothes, he still preferred to buy his own, rather than letting Lorelai free rein on his wardrobe.

They arrived in the bedroom and Lorelai pushed Luke to sit on the bed while she quickly grabbed a bag from their walk-in-closet. She placed it onto the bedroom bench at the foot of the bed and the first item she produced was a pair of dark denim jeans and Luke’s jaw dropped. His fear of too fancy evening wear was replaced by pleasant surprise.

Lorelai read his expression and smiled. “I got you these and I want you to not wear them to work for two reasons: one, you should have at least one pair of jeans that doesn’t have a grease stain on them and two, they are too sexy for the diner anyway because I got you a slim fit.”

Luke wanted to protest but Lorelai cut him off saying, “Ah-ah-ah, before you complain, they aren’t gonna be tight. They’re just a little less roomy and a little more fitting. I also got you this lovely brown leather belt that goes perfectly with these.” She handed the jeans and belt over to Luke and got a pair of brown leather Oxford brogues out of the bag. They matched the shade of the belt perfectly and the stitching made them look fancy but casual. Luke certainly had never worn anything like it and already felt ridiculous just holding them. Lorelai noticed his concern and hoped the next item would rid him of his worries. “And to keep the Luke Danes trademark I bought this.” She proudly flung a navy shirt out of the shopping bag with plaid stripes in burgundy and white. It was of elegant fine cotton that felt silky to the touch and it came accompanied by a soft half-zip sweater in a similar shade of blue. Lorelai laid the two items on the bed and grinned smugly. Luke, on the other hand, swallowed empty. “Oh, don’t look so scared, Luke, it’s just clothes. Now in the shower you go, I’ve got plans!” she lifted a conspiratorial eyebrow and Luke followed suit.

While he was in the bathroom, Lorelai changed herself into a wine-red dress that was tight-fitting, with a round neckline and short sleeves. Her 25-week belly was pronounced nicely, and she combined it with dark tights and brown leather ankle boots.  Her hair fell in soft curls over her shoulders and she was pleased with what she saw in the mirror. Luke had in the meanwhile freshened up and even shaved for the occasion. He stepped behind her, with only a towel wrapped around his waist, slung his arms around her and started placing kisses down her neck. “You look beautiful,” he murmured in between kisses, making Lorelai squirm. “And you need to get dressed otherwise you won’t get your present.”

“Can’t I just unwrap you?”

Lorelai giggled but directed him towards the pile of clothes. “Not now, I told you, I have plans.”

Luke reluctantly got dressed under Lorelai’s watchful eye. The pants were much stretchier than his regular jeans and actually quite comfortable. He still wasn’t convinced about the slim fit though. The shirt was also very soft and as he noticed, matched Lorelai’s dress. He tucked it in, adjusted the belt and got down on one knee to lace the shoes. When he stood back up and looked in the mirror he almost had to laugh. “Enough GQ for you?” he asked, rubbing one hand through his short hair. He had to admit, it didn’t look bad, just unfamiliar. Like a more modern (younger?) version of himself.

Lorelai ran her fingers along the shirt’s collar and whispered in a sultry voice, “Now I don’t know who is more looking forward to the unwrapping tonight.” She handed him the sweater with a wink and snatched her purse from the nightstand.

\---

Lorelai parked the Jeep in front of a Victorian building that donned the emblem of a private club. Wide stairs led up to the entry portal and Luke wondered if this was really the right place. A doorman was guarding the hallway and checked people’s credentials that wanted to walk up the stairs to the clubrooms. Lorelai didn’t pay that much attention, steering Luke through the door on the right into the restaurant. Luke looked around the pompous room, with its high windows and leather chairs. He could perfectly imagine James Bond sipping a Martini at the bar.

A waitress approached them and Lorelai explained that she had made a reservation for two under ‘Danes’. Luke’s eyes lit up at the little detail and they followed the young girl around the bar and towards the back of the building where the whole wall was paned, offering an astonishing view over the golf course that was dipped in the red light of the sunset. The room had a high ceiling and big chandeliers were hanging from it. The light was dimmed, and every table had a candle on it. Every other wall was clad in wood and large potted plants divided the tables, leaving guests with the illusion of privacy.

Although the restaurant seemed very fancy, considering that it belonged to an exclusive private club, the other guests were equally casual and Luke relaxed upon taking his seat. It was a very nice place and the menu had his mouth water. He was also pleased to see that they had a wide selection of beer from the tap and chose one he had tried a long time ago but had never seen it in any store.

The food came very quickly, and Luke was enjoying every bite. He was about to comment on it when he found himself being smothered by a pair of boobs.

“Happy birthday, Sugah!” said a raspy voice and the stout woman that was attached to the bosom squeezed him some more. “It’s so nice to see ya! I’d have come to the diner earlier, but I was out all day. Lorelai’s treatin’ ya like a king, huh?” she grinned widely and nudged Lorelai with her elbow.

Luke had managed to school his features back to a neutral smile and thanked Babette politely for the congratulations. Only Lorelai noticed that his ears were glowing. They exchanged some more pleasantries and then Babette linked her arm with her husband’s, who as usual stood silently beside her. “We don’t wanna intrude any longer. Enjoy your evening!” she said and the two left.

Luke pushed his plate away from him and locked eyes with Lorelai. “I have the feeling it’s no coincidence that Babette and Morey are here.”

Lorelai shrugged and continued eating, giving it no further thought.

“Lorelai?” Luke probed.

“What? Morey performs for the club from time to time and they get a discount here. Babette actually recommended me this place, so I went to check it out and thought it was perfect to celebrate your birthday. I didn’t know they’d be here tonight. It’s a coincidence, that’s all.”

Luke didn’t quite believe her as for one he knew Lorelai too well and second; he didn’t believe in coincidences. Not when they involved his townsfolks anyway. Nonetheless, he decided to ignore it.

Their table got cleared and the waitress had brought the dessert menu, which Lorelai studied with glee. Luke wasn’t big on desserts but since it was his birthday and one was allowed a piece of cake on that day, he ordered a piece of pumpkin pie, without whipped cream, of course, he was indulging not suicidal. Lorelai shook her head at him and rolled her eyes.

Happily digging in, Luke had a second look around the restaurant and spotted Tom and his wife enjoying a cocktail at the bar. The coincidences started to pile up.

“Alright, what’s going on?”

Lorelai, who was cradling a cup of steaming coffee like it was a precious jewel, looked up at him stunned. “What do you mean?”

“There are too many people from Stars Hollow here and I think that’s suspicious or are you gonna tell me next that Tom is a member?”

Lorelai set her cup down and sighed, “And I think, old age is making you paranoid.”

Luke ignored the stab and reached out to hold her hand. “I promise I won’t be angry. I just want to know if I need to practice my surprise-face.”

Lorelai sighed, “Luke, I didn’t plan a surprise birthday party for you, but I am getting the feeling that you actually wanted one.”

Lorelai looked upset, which made Luke regret his nagging. She had taken him out for a wonderful dinner, and he was ruining his own birthday. “Lorelai, I’m -,” his apology hung in the air when a figure caught his eye and he frowned, “Oh, come on! I just saw Kirk going through that door!”

Lorelai swore under her breath and dropped the charade, “Alright fine. Remember last week when you told me I was overdoing it? Well, I thought about it and I think you were right.”

Luke’s knitted eyebrows shifted upwards in surprise and he mumbled, “Can I have that in writing?”

“Shush you,” Lorelai silenced him with a stare and continued, “I took your advice and dropped all Christmas and New Year’s Eve related plans, because – honestly – I didn’t wanna do them in the first place. The Thanksgiving dinner at the Dragonfly will still take place but I am not involved any longer and the only town festival I’m going to partake is the Winter Carnival and only because I have already a great idea for a booth.”

Luke nodded and felt relieved that Lorelai had actually listened to his concerns.

“What I couldn’t do, was drop everything and hide. Luke, believe it or not, this town loves you and they want to celebrate you. And if I deny them an engagement party we might not survive until the wedding. Also, they really want to support our little family and not having a baby shower would be cruel. So, we’re celebrating everything today,” Lorelai finished quickly hid behind the coffee mug.

Luke leaned back in his chair and folded his arms. Lorelai was afraid to look at him, fearing the icy stare might kill her on the spot but was surprised to find him grinning.

“So there _is_ a surprise party after all. I _knew_ it.”

“Oh, stop gloating! I gave them strict rules: no jumping out calling ‘surprise’; no singing ‘happy birthday’; I forbid Taylor to hold a speech; no silly party games, like tasting baby food out of diapers; no Karaoke; and NO conga line. I Luke-proved it all.”

“Impressive. And when is that supposed to start?

Lorelai checked the time on her phone and said, “T minus twenty.”

“What? It already started?”

“That’s the genius of it. The party is more for them than for us. We don’t even have to attend if you’d rather go home…”

Luke got up and extended a hand, “Shall we?” He pulled Lorelai to her feet and gave her an appreciative kiss. Lorelai almost melted.

\---

Together they stepped through the side door and entered a ballroom. On the opposite wall was a small stage on which Morey and his band members were setting up and tuning their instruments. The corner to the left of the stage was decorated with a banner reading ‘It’s a boy’. A table was set up below and already some presents were deposited. Lulu sat behind a second table that was obviously transformed into a crafting station. There were wooden blocks that guests could decorate with designs, numbers, and letters. Lulu, being a teacher, was in her element, accompanied by Patty and Babette.

The corner on the right also donned a banner with the words ‘Mr. & Mrs. – 06/03/2006’ on it. Instead of gift- or crafting table, a young tree was proudly sitting in a pot under the banner. The idea was for people to write well-wishes on small heart-shaped cards and hang them on the tree with strings. The tree then was to be planted in Luke’s and Lorelai’s front lawn and root there, making the wishes come true. It was also a symbol for everlasting love, which Luke thought was rather corny, but he did like the tree they had picked. Lorelai loved the idea of having a magic tree in her garden that could grant wishes.

The rest of the room was decorated with huge party balloons and filled with sofas, chairs, and tables, dividing the room into smaller sitting areas. In front of the stage was left some space open for people to dance.

Another door on the left wall was leading to the entrance area of the building and a small bar was located next to it. The wall on the right was exactly like in the restaurant with windows from top to bottom.

\---

The large room had filled with people and Morey’s band was creating a relaxed atmosphere by playing a mix of funk, jazz and soul. Lorelai had excused herself to powder her nose and Luke stood in the center of the room, holding a beer, unsure of what to do with himself. Lorelai had done a masterful job at diverting the attention from him, so much so that he almost felt overlooked.

Hanging by the bar wasn’t really an option, since he had only nipped at his beer and Bootsy was chatting up one of the female bartenders and Luke didn’t want to witness any more of that. He also most definitely did not want to decorate any toys with Babette and Patty chewing his ear off with horrific baby stories. The third option was to write himself a wish and hang it on the magical greenery. It was also the most pathetic option and Luke wondered when he had become so dependent on Lorelai. Then remembered that he wouldn’t be in this situation in the first place if it wasn’t for her.

A hand landed on Luke’s shoulder and he turned around. “Happy birthday, old man!” Jess grinned and hugged his uncle quickly. Luke was taken aback for a moment but recovered quickly, “Jess! I didn’t expect to see you tonight! Are you with Liz?” Luke scanned the crowd over Jess’ shoulder, but the boy shook his head.

“They’re still on the road. Should be back in about two weeks. I just came to see if you needed any assistance. You know putting on socks in the morning, reading the expiration dates on packages… I could also help you touch up those greys,” Jess pretended to flick a hair off his uncle’s shoulder, but Luke swatted his hand away and gnarled, “Shut up, Jess!”

Lorelai emerged from the crowd and asked, “You boys already fighting?”

“He’s just reminding me why I don’t celebrate birthdays,” Luke grumbled.

“Don’t be like that. Besides, I _do_ like those greys,” Lorelai purred and dragged her fingers through his short hair. Luke gaped at her in shock and opened his mouth several times like a stranded fish before Jess and Lorelai burst out laughing.

Luke, realizing they were baiting him and tried his best at a death stare. “ _Veeery_ funny! Don’t even think for a second I’m letting you stay at our place now,” he warned Jess.

Jess wiped a tear away from laughing, his smirk not wavering for a second, “No need. I’m a VIP guest at the Dragonfly.”

“What?!” Luke dumbfoundedly looked at Lorelai for confirmation who nodded. “When did you two become so chummy?”

“When we realized that it is much more fun to join forces and torture you together,” Lorelai fluttered her eyelashes.

“That’s what I thought,” Luke gnarled, shaking his head, but he didn’t get more time to sulk as a pair of arms flung around his neck. “Happy birthday, Luke!” Rory called and then gestured with her thumb to Lorelai and Jess, “These two giving you a hard time?” She had noticed Luke’s sour expression when approaching.

“Always,” Luke responded, trying to keep a serious face, but he couldn’t help but smile when he was surrounded by his little family.

“Ah, well I’d hate to dampen your mood any further, but Grandma and Grandpa were right behind me. Just a little heads up,” she gave him an encouraging pat and then turned to Jess. The two immediately delved into discussing their lives and, more importantly, books.

Lorelai glanced at the door and said in her conspirator-voice, “Enemy sighted! I can give you three good reasons why you should chug your beer, right now. Come on, I’ll give you some cover.” Luke just raised an eyebrow and shook his head lightly.

“You might need the fortification,” Lorelai urged him.

“How is getting me drunk fortifying?”

“You are getting ahead of yourself. That’s reason number three.”

“What is?”

“Getting you drunk. It’s always fun. At least for me.”

Luke wanted to remark that last time they were drunk, they made a baby but decided against it. “Those are two bad reasons,” he said instead.

“No, you’re just really bad at this game,” Lorelai taunted.

“What game? And what’s number two?”

“Ah, don’t wanna be caught with nitwit juice!”

“I think on my birthday I can drink whatever I like.”

“Exactly, bottoms up!”

“No!” Luke had to fend off Lorelai’s flailing arms.

“Lorelai!” Emily’s voice interrupted them sharply.

“Times up,” she quipped and turned to greet her parents with a big fake smile.

\---

While Lorelai tried to explain the nature of the event to her mother, who didn’t even try to understand it, Richard placed a hand on Luke’s back, “Walk with me, son,” and invited Luke along rather forcefully. “I understand it is your birthday today although this party is not to celebrate the occasion.”

“That’s correct – Sir.”

“Good. Well, we didn’t come empty-handed, but –,” he fished an envelope out of his suit jacket and handed it to Luke, “- this is for you.”

Luke looked stunned from the envelope back to Richard, “I don’t understand…”

“A birthday present, for you, to do whatever you like.”

“But, I…” Luke didn’t really know why he was arguing it until he opened the letter and glanced inside. “Christ! It’s too much. I can’t accept this!”

“Yes, you can. You can and you will. Listen, son, Lorelai is a very stubborn woman, too stubborn for her own good sometimes. But she usually gets what she wants, she’s a Gilmore after all. But sometimes, a little help goes a long way, you know what I’m saying? Accepting it is not the same as being defeated. As her father, I have her best interests at heart, and I want her to be happy. She has chosen you, Luke and I know that in the past we had our differences because you may not be the man we had pictured for her, but I think it’s best if we put that behind us. She does not care for our opinion and she certainly does not ask for our help. That, however, does not mean that we do not care or want to help.

Tradition dictates that the family of the bride pays for the wedding. Lorelai obviously refuses our involvement. That’s why I’m giving this to you. A young and growing family is not expected to shoulder everything on their own. That’s what we, the older generation, are for. We support any way we can, with advice, with time, with money.

I’m sure you have all bases covered but a small token won’t hurt. If you don’t need it for the wedding, then put it towards something else. Buy yourself a nice car. Have you seen the new BMW models, roomy but sporty, you might like them. Great cars for a family. I can get you in contact with my dealer. Or put it towards a college trust fund. It’s never too early to start investing in the future.

You see, running a family is much like running a company and as a fellow business owner, I think you will agree with me when I say that a great leader has to be able to make tough decisions – sacrifices - for the greater good.  You will be the backbone of that family, Luke, but you don’t have to do it alone. If you ever need anything, you come to me. We can talk, from man to man.

So, view this money as a peace offering and use it however you see fit. You’re a bright young man, I’m sure you’ll make the right decision, son.” Richard gave Luke a friendly clap on the shoulder, but Luke’s legs had turned into boiled spaghetti during the monologue and the weight of Richard’s hand mad him almost topple over.

“Thank you,” Luke pressed out unconvincingly. He had gone completely white and felt nauseous. His shirt must have been soaked through.

 

 

“I thought I just heard my father call you ‘son’!” Lorelai’s voice whispered next to him and Luke realized that Richard and Emily had gone, and Lorelai was standing in front of him with an ‘I-must-be-dreaming’ expression on her face.

“Yes. He – he tends to do that.” Luke said, his voice leaving him mid-sentence. He felt too hot and too cold at the same time. Thank goodness he wasn’t wearing a tie.

“Are you okay?” Lorelai had noticed his discomfort and she also had noticed that her father had been talking at Luke for quite a while.

“I think your father just bribed me,” Luke finally said.

“What?!”

“He complimented me, I think… No, wait. First, he congratulated me, then he insulted me? He went on and on about family and… and responsibilities. And then he gave me ten grand. Do we need a new car?”

“Excuse me??”

“I think he’s right. We have two cars but no backseats. Why do we have two cars without backseats??”

“Luke, wind back a little…”

“What if we have to take the baby somewhere? We can’t put him in the back of the truck! That’s not safe! And what if he’s smart? Then he wants to go to college. Can we afford college? And what were we thinking renovating the house?! Three people have never lived in that house. Wait, we’re gonna be _four_ people! Four people don’t fit in that house!

“Luke!”

“I need to sit down.” Luke slumped down on the backrest of an unoccupied sofa, rubbing one hand over his chest, breathing heavily. “What is this feeling, this tightness in the chest, this anger mixed with paralyzing weakness? Am I having a heart attack?”

Lorelai had to stifle a laugh, “You’re **not** having a heart attack. You've been Gilmored. “

Luke took deep breaths and looked crestfallen. “That doesn’t sound good either.”

Lorelai stepped in between his legs and rubbed his shoulders. “It will pass. Now tell me what he said exactly so I can go and yell at him with specifics and return that ridiculous cheque.”

“No, don’t.”

“Why not?!”

“Because,” What he really wanted to say was that her returning the cheque made him look like a wussy, but he didn’t expect Lorelai to understand. Richard wasn’t all wrong, he was supposed to support this family and he wasn’t entirely sure if he could. “Because what he says makes sense. We could need some help!”

“No, we don’t. We are perfectly fine on our own. Luke, you’re the most responsible person I know. This is my father speaking, not you. You can’t let him get into your head and mess with it. That’s what Gilmores do.”

Luke sighed, “Oh, they’re good at that.”

“I don’t wanna say ‘I told you so’ but you should have downed that beer. I know alcohol isn’t a solution, but it helps numb the pain.”

“I could still get hammered,” Luke suggested weakly.

Lorelai wanted to make a witty comment but was once again interrupted by the shrill voice of her mother, “Lorelai, did you know Rory is still getting together with that dreadful boy?!”

Confused she turned around, “I thought you liked Logan?”

“Not Logan! That scrawny one! The one that showed up to dinner with a black eye.”

“OH, you mean Jess? You might wanna get used to him, he is going to be part of the family,” Lorelai smiled at Emily’s horrified misunderstanding. “He’s Luke’s nephew. I thought you knew that.”

“Right,” Emily managed a thin-lipped smile. “How nice. Richard, I think it’s time we’re leaving.”

“Alright. Lorelai, it’s been a pleasure,” Richard gave Lorelai a kiss on the cheek.

“Good night, Dad.”

“Luke,” Richard extended a hand and the two men shook hands. Lorelai could have sworn she saw her father winking – and did Luke stand a little straighter than usual?

\---

Jess and Rory had found a more secluded area close to the door and after having shortly talked with her grandparents, Rory was recounting the fight between Luke and Christopher in vivid details. Jess was convulsed with laughter, gasping for air and leaning against the wall for support. Just when Rory got to the part of her father landing in the pool, a wet kiss landed on her cheek. “Logan! You found it,” Rory squealed and found herself in a tight embrace.

“Of course,” Logan smirked and aimed for another kiss.

Rory dodged his second attempt and awkwardly stepped away from him, gesturing at Jess, “Uhm… Logan this is Jess, my uh-”

“Cousin,” Jess jumped in before Rory had the chance to say anything else and shook Logan’s hand.

“Huh, I didn’t know you had any cousins,” Logan noted, seeing the puzzled look Rory threw at Jess.

“We’re not related. He’s Luke’s nephew,” Rory explained.

“Ah, you’re from Stars Hollow then? Did you guys grow up together?” Logan asked, suspecting more than just childhood friends.

“You could say that,” Jess nodded, getting irritated by Logan’s interrogative questions.

Logan decided that attack was the best kind of defense and asked bluntly, “You date?”

Jess clenched his jaw, but Rory didn’t miss a beat. She raised her chin a little and looked Logan dead in the eye, “Yes. We used to date.”

Logan ignored the feeling of his gut turning inside out and plowed forward with a stoic face, “Ah! No hemming. No hawing. Good course of action. So, were you two high school sweethearts? Rock around the clock, two straws in the milkshake?”

“Logan,” Rory shot him a warning look.

“Hey, did we cheer? I don't think we cheered. That's bad luck. Let's cheers.”

“How do you already have a drink? You just arrived,” Rory asked. He must have snuck past them and headed straight for the bar.

“What can I say, I arrived thirsty and the bar’s right next to the door,” he shrugged and raised his glass. The three of them clinked their glasses and sipped in silence.

“So… what do you do, Jess?” Logan asked.

Jess, as per usual didn’t feel like sharing much and answered vaguely, “Oh, this and that,” which wasn’t a satisfactory response to Logan. “Describe the ‘this’. Describe the ‘that’,” he asked further.

Jess didn’t move so Rory chimed in, “He writes.”

“You write? Impressive. What do you write?”

“Nothing important,” Jess shrugged.

Rory didn’t understand why Jess was being so secretive and told Logan that he wrote a book.

“Oh, you penned the great American novel, Jess? Logan asked.

“Wasn't quite that ambitious.”

“So, what are we talking here? Short novel? Kafka length or longer? Dos Passos, Tolstoy? Or longer? Robert Musil? Proust? I'm not throwing you with these names, am I?” Logan raised an eyebrow provocatively.

Jess did not rise to the bait and counter attacked, “You seem very obsessed with length.”

“I'm just trying to get a picture in my head, that's all,” Logan replied cooly.

Rory was getting highly agitated by their exchange of subtle stabs. “It's a short novel,” she said hoping the conversation would move along.

Logan turned to Rory and wanted to know if it was any good. To Jess’ surprise, Rory answered in the affirmative and even went on to describe which parts she had liked the most.

Logan realized he was no longer part of the conversation and felt the need to butt in, “You know, I should just write down all my random thoughts and stuff that happens to me and conversations I have and just add a bunch of ‘he said, she said’-s, and get it published. You got a copy on you?”

“No,” Jess snapped, and thought that Logan would be the kind of person that would never shut up about his book and carry copies around for ‘just in case’. _Pathetic_.

“You should send me a copy.”

“Sure. And where do I send it? The blond dick at Yale?”

Jess pushed himself off the wall and headed for the door, but Logan stepped in front of him, “Whoa, whoa. We're just trying to keep it friendly here, buddy.”

“Get out of my way,” Jess by-passes him and walked out. Rory turned to follow but Logan tried to hold her back. “Don’t,” she snapped at him and ran after Jess.

“Jess, wait.” She caught up to him by the big wooden portal as he was about to exit the building. He stopped and turned to look at her. “Jess, I'm sorry. He's just in a bad way lately…”

“He's a jerk!” Jess exclaimed.

“He was. In there, definitely. I'm so sorry.”

“I read that guy the second I saw him. He better not come out here,” Jess’ eyes sparkled dangerously.

“Please, Jess. He had a lot to drink. He's tired from traveling. This isn't him. I swear. You caught him on a bad night.”

Jess let out a short laugh, “Oh, come on! Don’t tell me this is the first time he acts like that.”

Rory bit her tongue. It wasn’t the first time and she wasn’t sure why she was making excuses for his behavior anyway. She was probably as annoyed as Jess was if not even more.

“Hey, uh… maybe we'll catch up at a better time.” He opened the door but turned around once more, “You still have to that story about your birthday,” he smirked, and Rory nodded and smiled back. She watched the door close behind him and re-entered the ballroom angry and determined.

\---

Kirk got up on the stage and tapped the microphone several times to make sure it was on. After he had called ‘test, test, one, two, three’ into it he had the undivided attention of the room and gulped. The light was blinding him, and he couldn’t make out the individual faces of the crowd which was somewhat impractical considering what he had in mind.

He fumbled for a piece of paper in his suit pocket and cleared his throat, “Dear Lorelai, Luke, my man.” Kirk tapped his fist to his chest twice in a brotherly love sign, which made Lorelai chuckle and Luke frown.

“And here I thought you said no speeches,” he murmured into Lorelai’s ear.

“I forbid Taylor to hold a speech, not Kirk,” she corrected him. “I did tell him, however, to not do anything insane, but then again it’s Kirk,” she shrugged as part of her explanation.

Luke turned his attention back to the stage and sighed, “May God help us.”

Kirk in the meantime had said that he had prepared a little something to celebrate the two of them, especially Luke on his special day and he had asked Lulu on stage to assist him, which she had done happily with a twirl and a curtsey.

Kirk produced a round disk out of his suit jacket and a short black stick with white ends. He wielded the stick, tapped the circle twice which sprung back into shape revealing a top hat. The crowd went ‘Uh!’ and ‘Ah!’ at his little magic trick and Kirk ceremonially placed the hat on his head. He felt he was off to a good start.

He signaled his lovely assistant and Lulu pressed play on the DJ setup. Apparently his act had most dramatic background music. He started to produce items out of his hat by wielding his wand and making all kinds of bodily gestures. It was first a wine glass, then a bottle, which Lulu opened and poured some red wine into the glass. Next was a vase, then a flower, which Lulu again placed nicely on the small round table so the audience could see that it was all real. It followed a candle, which she lit and it became clear, that Kirk had all the ingredients for a romantic setup. The music changed to a faster pace announcing the highlight of his show.

Everyone held their breaths and Lorelai gripped Luke’s hand in anticipation, which earned her an eye roll. With a drum roll, Kirk tapped his hat and a second later a white dove sat on his hand, flapping its wings lightly.

The room erupted in wild applause and even Luke couldn’t hold back a small ‘oh’ and clapped his hands. Lulu fed the bird some seeds and Kirk gently set it down on the table. The animal was very well behaved and obviously didn’t care about being part of a magic show. Kirk took a bow and like a good magician and gentleman led Lulu by the hand to the center of stage letting her take a bow as well.

The background music suddenly changed, leaving people to look around in confusion, but Kirk was fully prepared for what was coming next. The second act.

He donned his top hat, through the wand in the air, which upon release grew in length and he caught it and swung the now walking stick in tune to the music. Then he broke out into dance.

It was quite clear that Lulu was not prepared for that and stood in the center of the stage, looking quite lost but also amazed. Kirk took hold of her hand again and danced in a circle around her. He began to sing.

Through the song he confessed his endless love to her, Lulu blushed furiously.

By the end of the song, Kirk finished with a pose on one knee, holding on to Lulu’s hand and the walking stick in the other outstretched. But before anybody could react, he had returned the cane back into a wand, took his top hat off and tapped it one last time, revealing a small box. The crowd gasped.

“Lulu Kuschner, will you marry me?” Kirk asked, holding the open box up to her. The girl clasped both hands over her mouth and tears were running down her cheeks, but she nodded feverishly in response.

The crowd went wild and Kirk got up to hug his girlfriend – correction – fiancée and placed the ring on her finger. Somebody (Morey) had started the song ‘celebration’ over the speakers and Kirk and Lulu were dragged off stage.

Luke leaned close to Lorelai’s ear and whispered, “Did Kirk just piggyback on my party?”

Lorelai glanced up at him with a bemused smile, “Your party?” She lifted an eyebrow provocatively and tilted her head.

Luke’s breathing hitched; the emotional charge of the room not completely lost on him. The soft dimmed light danced on her skin and her red lips came dangerously close. Her eyes searched his and she knew exactly what he was thinking. She was gorgeous and Luke lost the battle.

He wrapped his right arm around her shoulders to draw her in and closed the gap, pressing an inviting kiss to her lips that left Lorelai breathless. Nobody paid attention to them in the turmoil and Luke went ahead and deepened the kiss. It was tender yet full of longing and promises and when they resurfaced, both had only one thing on their minds. “Ready to leave?” Luke asked huskily and Lorelai hummed in response. Then all hell broke loose.

\---

Logan leaned against the bar and waited for Rory to return, sipping his third Whiskey since he arrived. Rory almost rushed past him when she reentered, but Logan caught her by the elbow and swung her around. With a dumb grin on his face, he leaned in closer to talk over the music. “You're not gonna believe this. This guy got up on stage and performed a full-blown magic show and now he’s doing a musical number!”

Rory glanced up to the stage, where Kirk was tap dancing around a flustered Lulu. It must have looked weird to anyone not from Stars Hollow but Rory couldn’t care less at the moment. Logan downed his drink and nodded towards the door, “He gone?”

Rory narrowed her eyes at Logan and gritted out, “Yes, he's gone.”

“Writers are so sensitive,” Logan scoffed and signaled the bartender for a refill.

“You were a jerk, Logan.”

“I was just challenging him. Jeez. Hey, if Hemingway can take it, so can he. Hey, if he wanted to, he could have taken a pop at me. Pugnacity! It's a vital component of literary life. Again, consult your Hemingway. Come on. Do not let this guy get to you.”

“You're getting to me,” Rory fired back.

Logan finally registered Rory’s scowl, “Me?”

“Yes. You were an ass.”

“Look, I'm sorry I messed things up here,” Logan explained but Rory cut in, “Jess wrote a book. He wrote a book, and you mocked him.”

“I did not mock him,” Logan defended himself.

“You were condescending, and you had no right to be. He's doing something.”

“Good. Fine. He's doing something. Everybody in the world's doing something. More power to him.”

“You have no idea what some people have to go through in order to achieve something like that. Just because he isn’t from your social circle, doesn’t mean you can treat him like that.”

“Like what?”

“Like you’re something better. You did it with Marty and now you did it with Jess. Not everybody gets opportunities handed to them and you diminishing their efforts like that sucks.”

“Really? And it's all so easy for me?” Logan shot back.

“You have every door open to you. You have opportunities that anyone would kill for, including me.”

“Every door?!” Logan shouted, “All I see is one door, and I'm being pushed through it. I have no choice. You try living without options.”

Rory scoffed, “How hard are you fighting it?”

“Hey! I did not come here to be insulted by my girlfriend. You know what? If you think he’s so great then why don't you go off with John, Jack, whatever his name is?!”

“Oh, I'm not going off with Jess!”

Logan sighed and wanted to ask Rory to leave when a voice over the speakers said, “Lulu Kuschner, will you marry me?”

“Oh my God!” Rory gasped next to him and the crowd erupted into wild applause.

“Let’s get out of here,” Logan tried again but Rory tore herself free.

“I can’t leave now!”

“But… you said you’ll drive us home, and I want to go!”

“Then go,” she hissed back.

“Fine,” Logan turned on his heels and stormed out. Rory stared angrily after him, both hands clenched into fists, then decided that she was not going to run after him. She dramatically twirled around and without looking where she was going literally ran a waiter over.

The boy had been carrying a tray full of Champagne glasses meant for the celebration of the newly engaged couple. He pulled a quite amazing Matrix move in order to save if not the glasses at least the guests from being showered by the bubbly beverage. Unfortunately, the dumping place was the table behind the waiter on which Lulu had deposited Kirk’s magical accessories including the lovely bird in its cage. The animal did not appreciate the shattered glass and sticky liquid raining down on it and escaped its confinement with a loud shriek and wild fluttering.

The ruckus her clash had caused had captured the attention of the whole room and all eyes were glued to the dove, who had taken flight. “Cleopatra, no!” Kirk shouted and started following the bird, jumping up and down trying to capture her. The traumatized animal circled the room twice before landing on a table, stealing a salty cracker from a bowl. Kirk slowly bent over the table and closed his hands around the animal in slow-motion. He didn’t want to risk scaring Cleopatra anew. What he did not take into consideration was his dangling tie. It swung slightly forth and back, over the candle that was placed on the table.

“Gotcha,” Kirk triumphantly stood up straight, holding the dove securely in both hands.

“Kirk, sweetheart, you’re on fire,” Miss Patty politely pointed out and Kirk slowly followed her gaze. With a loud shriek, he dropped the bird and started wildly patting his tie down. The flame however only grew angrier and swallowed his tie hungrily. Kirk reached for a more drastic measure and snatched at the first liquid content he could find. Taylor’s glass happened to be the closest and without thinking, Kirk splashed it against his chest, causing a quick blaze that singed off his eyebrows. He had not anticipated the high alcohol content of the older man’s Absinthe and went screaming to his knees. Andrew jumped into action and emptied and ice bucket over Kirk’s head, suffocating the fire directly. With a small sizzling sound, the chaos stopped, leaving the room in utter and complete silence.

Lorelai’s natural leading instincts kicked in and she emerged from the initial shock. Luke had protectively wrapped both arms around her and eased his grip with a gasp of relief. Lorelai got up on a chair and demanded full attention. “Alright folks, party’s over!”

She asked everyone who did not help clean up to leave and went to check if kirk was in need of any medical attention. Slowly the room started to empty and thankfully nobody, except Kirk’s eyebrows, got harmed during the short mishap. Morey and the band were packed up quickly and almost everyone had left by the time Lorelai came back from talking to Mr. Lyon, the owner of the Imperial Club. He was most displeased to hear about the incident and even threatened to get the police involved. Lorelai wasn’t sure what the police could have done except maybe arrest Kirk’s tie. She had tried to soothe the angry man with her charm, with humor, and finally with pleas. Nothing worked and when she left his office, she felt like a school kid that had been scolded by the principal. That sensation was even more enforced when she met the young waiter, who had dropped the tray of Champagne flutes. He stood in front of Mr. Lyon’s office, wringing his hands nervously and Lorelai hoped he wasn’t about to get fired. She sent him an encouraging smile which he did not reciprocate.

On her way out she quickly threw a glance into the ballroom, that lay in the dark, and thanked her lucky stars that they had captured the bird. She had had enough excitement for the day and just wanted to go home.

\---

Luke had helped Sookie load all the gifts and crafting things into her minivan. By the time he left the building with the last box under his arm, the parking was almost completely deserted. Rory leaned against the Jeep and played with her own car keys.

“Rory! Have you seen Jess? I can’t find him anywhere.”

“Oh, he left a while ago.”

“Really? And uh… your uhm…” Luke didn’t know how exactly to address Logan, but Rory understood and frowned, “Gone too.”

Luke placed the box in the trunk and turned towards the girl, noticing the thunderclouds hanging above her head. “Everything okay?”

“Fine.”

“Okay,” Luke knew something was up, but he did not wish to discuss boyfriend troubles with her, so he pressed his lips together, nodded and folded his arms over his chest.

Rory kicked some gravel around, burying her fists deep into her coat pockets. She was fuming at Logan, sorry about Jess, embarrassed about her clumsiness and felt guilty for ruining the evening. Luke leaned back against the car next to her and feverishly thought of something to say to lighten the mood. Slightly awkward situations between him and Rory were nothing new but the silence that had fallen between them was unbearable.

“So, tell me, does this shindig beat your 8th birthday party?”

Rory let out a short laugh and mused, “Well, I don’t know. Does Kirk setting himself on fire beat a clown getting arrested for armed robbery?”

“Armed robbery? Geez! I didn’t know it was that serious!”

“It was all over the news for days; ‘Wanted man detained at local inn posing as party attraction.’” Rory recited the headlines of the newspaper and nudged him, “I guess caveman didn’t read the papers and ignored all the gossip.”

“Hey! Maybe caveman was just busy. I did just open the diner.”

“Really? Wow, I can’t remember Stars Hollow without Luke’s. You’re a staple.”

“Thank you.”

Rory thought about the crucial part Luke had played in her life and another wave of guilt washed over her. “I’m sorry, I ruined your party.”

Luke laid his left arm across her shoulders in a sideways hug and gave her a light squeeze, “Nah, that’s okay. It wasn’t really my party anyway. But I have to say, I never thought you take revenge on me so soon.”

Rory stiffened and stared up at him in shock, “What?! No, I’d never -”

“Rory, I’m kidding. You just made it more memorable!” he winked at her. “But if anyone had the right to… you got dibs.”

Rory relaxed, leaned into Luke’s warm side and murmured, “Like a wise woman once said: there's nothing like a family to screw up a family.”

Speaking of the devil, Lorelai stepped through the door and skipped down the stairs towards Luke and Rory, who leaned against the Jeep side by side, Luke’s arm still lazily around Rory’s shoulders.

“You got space for two more?” Lorelai asked and threw one arm around Rory and the other around Luke, initiating their first-ever group hug, and it felt surprisingly right. She breathed in the cold air and relished the moment. “Luke, I’m never throwing you a surprise party again!”

Luke laughed out loud and kisses the top of her head, “I thought it wasn’t my party..?”

Lorelai rolled her eyes but chuckled, “Let’s go home.” She turned towards Rory to give her a kiss when she remembered to ask, “Hey didn’t you say Logan was coming too?”

Rory’s smile immediately disappeared, “Uh, he did… and then he left…”

“Everything okay?” Lorelai asked worriedly.

“The jury’s out on that one,” Rory said with a stern expression. It would have been easy, going home to Stars Hollow and hide there over the weekend but she knew she couldn’t ignore their fight for long, they lived together after all. So she bid farewell and prepared herself for another uncomfortable conversation with Logan.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello reader, thanks for still being here. 🙌  
> I apologize for my slow updating rhythm, I'm not as good a writer as I'd like to be and this chapter especially did not want to go down on paper. I hope you like it anyway.
> 
> I've also created a small drawing that goes along with Chapter 5. Go have a look! 😉  
> Cheerio and see you soon, love,  
> Atlas.


	10. Honor To Whom Honor Is Due

**LUKE’S DINER - SATURDAY 19 TH NOVEMBER – MORNING**

Lorelai and Rory sat down for breakfast at Luke’s. Lane eagerly went over to their table, almost hopping up and down with glee. Before either one of them could ask her, what has gotten into her, Lane spilled the beans, announcing that she and the band were playing a showcase on Wednesday night. The Gilmore girls joined in on the enthusiasm and Lane asked Rory, “Hey, do you want to be our DA Pennebaker? We're borrowing a video camera, and we need someone sober to do the photography.”

“I could set my crack pipe aside for the night and do that,” Rory said, earning a grateful smile from her friend, “Thanks! You plus one, right?” Lane asked, writing the details of the showcase down for Rory.

“Plus one?” Rory looked confused.

“You plus Logan?”

“No. Just me,” Rory answered tightlipped, receiving a worried side glace from Lorelai.

“Oh, okay. How about you, Lorelai?”

“Working that night, sweetie, but break a leg.”

“Thanks. Here,” She handed Rory the note. “See you guys,” she nodded and left.

After a pregnant silence Lorelai cleared her throat and asked, “So, just you, huh?”

“Just me,” Rory confirmed, and Lorelai added an ‘ookayy’ that made Rory almost roll her eyes. “As long as you're prying –,

“I wasn't!”

“Briefly, succinctly, Logan and I are not talking right now.”

“Not working through it then, huh?”

After Luke’s birthday it had taken quite some interrogative skills on Lorelai’s part to get to the bottom of Rory’s fight with Logan. Besides feeling sorry for Rory, she couldn’t believe that she had completely missed their blowout.

“After yelling at each other for a week, and then ignoring each other for another, I think it became clear that we need a little break, at least I do. It's more like a hiatus. I’m staying with Paris at the moment.”

“Oh, honey, I’m sorry.” Lorelai patted Rory’s hand. “Well, sometimes a break is good,” she said in hopes of improving the mood.

“Sometimes,” Rory nodded, trying her best at a sunny expression.

\---

**HOME - WEDNES** **DAY 23 RD NOVEMBER – EVENING**

Luke locked the door behind him and placed his keys, shoes, jacket, and hat in their designated places. “Lorelai?” he called out into the house and glanced around the corner into the living room. Although every single lamp was on, she was not there. Luke shook his head at Lorelai’s penchant for illuminating empty rooms.

“Kitchen,” Lorelai called out without looking up. She sat at the table, her legs spread over a second chair, balancing a book on her stomach, while eating leftover peach cobbler directly out of the plastic container. Luke gave her a quick kiss on the head, got a glass out of the cupboard and filled it with water. He rummaged through a drawer looking for painkillers, dropped one tablet into the glass and heavily sat down opposite Lorelai. Elbows perched up on the table, he cradled his head in both hands, watching the tablet slowly dissolve.

Lorelai lowered her book and nudged his leg with her toes. “Everything okay?”

Luke made a growling noise in his throat, downed the water in one go and looked at Lorelai. “Liz is back.”

Luke had always had a love/hate relationship with his sister, but he usually didn’t seem all that bothered by it. Lorelai put her book aside and waited. She had learned a long time ago that pushing Luke to open up generally backfired. He was the master of fuming inwardly after all. Silence, on the other hand, loosened his tongue much more easily and even though Lorelai wasn’t particularly good at keeping silent, she tried and so Luke sighed and explained, “She’s been back for two days and my life’s already a mess! She had the glorious idea of inviting a dozen of her crazy friends to a Thanksgiving dinner. She has never made dinner for that many people – strike that; she’s never made dinner. It’s a nightmare! She thought she could make the turkey in the microwave because her oven’s broken. The stupid idiot brother I am offered her to use mine. I mean, I technically don’t mind her being upstairs as long as she doesn’t burn the place down, which is much more likely than I thought. She’s like a child; you can’t leave her unsupervised. So, when the turkey was in the oven, she wanted to make rolls, but now the oven’s already occupied, so she came back down and took over one in the diner. Fine, I can work around her, but then she started bugging the customers and that’s where I draw the line. I went with her upstairs to check on things because the smell that wafted into the diner was - not great. The apartment looked like Motley Crue had a field day and Martha, turns out, _doesn’t_ have all the answers!”

“Martha?”

“Stewart. Her newest obsession. My mother used to say, ‘who can read, can cook’, but I guess she was wrong. You know when we were kids, I helped her out because she was my little sister and I felt kinda responsible, but I always thought she’d grow up one day. That didn’t happen… My day ended with cleaning up after her, throwing out all the – can’t even call it food anymore, all the while she sat there drinking wine!”

Luke groaned again and massaged his temples forcefully as if he could rub Liz and her troubles away. Lorelai chewed her lip, wrecking her brain for a solution. She liked Liz well enough, but her antics were sometimes a bit out there and she understood Luke’s frustration. It also didn’t surprise her that Luke would drop everything and run to her aid, because that’s just who Luke was. He’d do anything for the people he loved, even if it made him miserable. “You are a very good brother,” she said and sent him an encouraging smile.

Luke scoffed, “I’m a very dumb brother. I’m perfectly aware that she’s using me, yet I’m still doing it. I can’t say ‘no’ to her, but I have no idea how I’m gonna salvage her dinner.”

“Why don’t you bring them along to the inn? Sookie makes more than enough food and I’m sure we can squeeze them in somehow.”

Luke stopped ruffling his hair and gaped at Lorelai. “Did you hear the part where I said it’s Liz and TJ and ten of their Renaissance loonies?”

“I did.”

“And you want them in your inn? Why?!”

Lorelai shrugged, “It’s Thanksgiving. I’m in a giving mood. Rory already has invited Lane along. What are a few more mouths to feed? Come on, it will be fun! You can mock them all evening long, while enjoying a great meal and you won’t have to worry about a thing!”

“But…” Luke said, but at this point, he wasn’t sure why he was still fighting it. Lorelai’s plan did sound very enticing and would free him from all his brotherly duties.

“No ‘buts’ Luke. What’s the alternative? You being stressed and miserable all day helping Liz pulling it together, only to come to dinner grumpy and exhausted and fall asleep before we get to dessert?”

“I don’t –,” Luke tried defending himself, but Lorelai was not done, “I’m not doing this for your sister or her guests, Luke. I’m doing it for you. Actually, _I’m_ not doing anything.”

“Fine,” Luke gave in with a deep sigh. “But you know they can’t afford the Dragonfly?”

“We’ll figure something out,” Lorelai smiled, not worried in the least. Luke watched her with astonishment. “How do you do that?”

“Do what?”

“Be so positive. Liz was bugging me all afternoon, I wanted to smack her over the head with a baking tray. Five minutes talking to you and all my problems are solved.”

Lorelai smiled proudly, she almost wanted to pat her own back, instead opted for a nonchalant shrug, “I can’t tell you all my secrets.”

Luke leaned across the table and pressed a soft kiss to Lorelai’s lips. “Thank you,” he whispered and closed the gap again, feeling extremely lucky to have Lorelai in his life. And maybe he’d get even more lucky later on…

\---

**DRAGONFLY INN - THURSDAY 24 TH NOVEMBER – THANKSGIVING NIGHT**

Sookie happily lifted a turkey out of the oven and placed it on the counter, where two others already waited. Lorelai entered the kitchen and announced that the restaurant was packed and hungry.

“Perfect timing,” Sookie said, putting some finishing touches on several large platters filled with all kinds of heavenly food before they were brought out to the buffet. “Tree, Chuck and Bob here are ready to be consumed.”

Lorelai looked at the three perfectly cooked birds and grimaced, “Please, don't name the food we eat.”

“Sorry,” Sookie chuckled and wiped her hands on her apron. “There's enough food, right?”

“There's plenty, even considering the extra guests,” Lorelai assured her.

“Good. Go tell them it'll be five minutes and I could use some help. Maybe send Luke in.”

“Will do.”

\---

Luke and Rory sat at the center of the table next to one another, flanked by Liz’s friends. How they had ended up there, they weren’t sure. Lane sat opposite Rory, keeping the chair next to her free for Lorelai.

Stu, who sat to Luke’s left asked, “So, when are you coming back out on the Renaissance Faire circuit with us?”

Luke went for dry sarcasm and said, “I think sometime after I'm drugged and lobotomized,” earning laughter from the whole table. Stu slapped Luke on the shoulder and laughed, “You're the funniest, smartest guy I know.”

Liz agreed, shouting across the table, “I'm calling him Yakov from now on.”

Luke leaned towards Rory and whispered, “Please don't judge me by this.”

“I won't. Yakov,” Rory teased, grinning slyly.

Lorelai entered and called out ceremonially, “We're just minutes away from eating, everybody!” A murmur of anticipation rippled through the dining hall.

“Oh, I can't wait to see this meal! My dinner didn't turn out like Martha's picture. Who knew a turkey could melt like that? I didn't,” Liz quipped, and the group erupted into another round of laughter. Rory and Lane exchanged amused glances.

Lorelai sent Luke into the kitchen and he happily obliged. She took the empty seat next to Lane and wished she could have had a glass of wine. Instead, she poured herself some water and sighed. “Oh, Lane, I completely forgot to ask. How was the showcase last night? Did the label guys show up?”

A dark shadow appeared above Lane’s head and she spoke through clenched teeth, “They did.”

“Oh-oh. That’s not a happy face… They didn’t like you?”

“We’ll never know,” Lane said bitterly and downed her glass of red wine. Lorelai threw a questioning look at Rory, who answered grimacing, “They had a little dispute - on stage…”

“That’s putting it mildly!” Lane scoffed. “Zack went full Anton Newcombe. He ruined everything!” she groaned dramatically and slammed her forehead against the table. Lorelai sat for a moment, stunned, looking helplessly at Rory.

“Ah, hon! I’m so sorry. Is there anything I can do?”

“More wine,” Lane mumbled into the tablecloth but stayed as she was.

“Oh, uhm… O-okay…” Lorelai refilled the glass and suppressed the urge to pat Lane’s hair.

“I just want to disappear. The earth can swallow me whole and spit me out on the other side.” Lane lifted her head off the table to look at Rory and asked, “What _is_ on the other side of the world?”

Rory thought for a second and replied, “Uhm, the Indian Ocean?”

Lane groaned and dropped her head back down. “What about California? Do you think that’s far enough?”

“What do you want to do in California?” Lorelai asked.

“Start over, as far away from here as possible. I can’t stay, I can’t move back in with my mom, work at the store and the diner for the rest of my life… That’s not how I pictured it!”

Lorelai wanted to tell Lane that she shouldn’t make any rash decisions but was interrupted by Rory’s ring tone. Upon checking the caller ID, Rory excused herself quickly and scurried away. Lorelai in the meantime tried to talk some sense into an agitated Lane who only listened with half an ear, while drowning her third glass of Pinot Noir.

Rory was back within minutes, looking frazzled and a bit greenish. Her eyes were wide and glassy, and she was about to squish her phone with her tight grip. “You’ve got room for one more on your west coast adventure?” she asked Lane, her voice sounded hollow and distant.

Lorelai turned her focus from Lane to her daughter, “What happened? Who was that?”

Rory slumped into her chair and threw the phone carelessly on the table. “I think Logan and I just broke up.”

“Oh Rory…” Lorelai whispered, ready to console her daughter but Lane turned from moping back to fury again and snapped, “He calls you on Thanksgiving to tell you that?!”

“Oh no, that wasn’t Logan. That was Honor, his sister. He told her that we broke up and now she told me…”

“He made his sister break up for him?! What a jerk!” Lane hissed.

“I don’t know. I don’t really know what just happened…”

Lorelai looked from Rory to Lane, worry etched on her face. This was not how she had imagined the evening to go. Thankfully, Luke reappeared at the table and Lorelai respired, “Luke, great! You will lighten the mood, won’t you?”

Luke raised both eyebrows and pointed at himself questioningly. “Sookie just kicked me out of the kitchen.”

“Of course she did! Men suck!” Lane spat. She had her arms folded over her chest and almost set the tablecloth on fire with her angry glare. Luke, too shocked to react, looked over at Lorelai, who helplessly shrugged. Luke then noticed that Rory had deeply sunken into her chair and seemed close to tears. He looked back at Lorelai and mouthed, ‘What is going on?’

Lorelai just shook her head in response. Not how she had imagined it, _at all!_

\---

**LUKE’S DINER – MONDAY 28 TH NOVEMBER - MORNING**

Luke was wiping down the counter and for the third time that morning he had to move around Kirk who sat there like a pillar of salt. Luke never had much patience for the younger man and so he exhaled audibly before asking in the friendliest tone he could muster, “Are you gonna order something at some point?”

The Kirk statue came to life and answered with a simple ‘no’, which made Luke reach the end of his tether. “Then what the hell are you doing here?!”

“I came to talk to you.”

“Talk? You’ve been sitting here for hours without saying a word!”

Kirk reddened and avoided Luke’s eye. “I actually came here to ask you something, but I don’t know how to phrase it yet and you hovering does not help.”

Luke folded his arms and ordered Kirk to either spit it out or get kicked out. His choice.

“Alright, alright,” Kirk collected all his courage, sat up straight and cleared his throat, “Luke – as you might know, I’ve recently gotten engaged and it is customary for the groom to have a best man and I was wondering if you’d do me the honor.”

Luke’s jaw dropped and for a second he was speechless, then embarrassment and discomfort took over and he stammered, “Oh Kirk, I don’t know…”

“You don’t have to make a decision right away. But I thought since you are getting married as well, I could be your best man in return. We could be wedding-buddies!”

Luke cringed at that mental image and tried to talk Kirk out of it, “I already have a best man, so…uh, sorry?”

“What? Who?” Kirk jumped off his chair and raised both fists, “I’ll duel them. My father had a dueling revolver and I kept it in mint conditions!”

“You’re not gonna duel anybody, Kirk!” Luke said loudly, the thought of Kirk having easy access to a weapon was concerning and alarming.

“Are you sure? What about a boxing match, or fencing? I’ll take on anybody, even Taylor!”

This earned Kirk raised eyebrows and a bemused smile, “You think Taylor is my best man?”

“He’s a respectable man, anybody should be lucky to have him as a best man,” Kirk defended Taylor, which gave Luke an idea, “Then why don’t _you_ ask Taylor?”

Kirk took a deep breath before admitting that that was not an option.

“Why not?” Luke had thought he had found the perfect loophole.

“Because he’d outshine me! I can’t have a man like Taylor stan up next to me at the altar. Lulu might accidentally marry him instead of me!”

Luke tried his best not to snort and coughed instead, “Yes, of course, that makes perfect sense.”

Kirk didn’t think it was all that amusing and said angrily, “It’s _my_ wedding day, Luke. It’s _my_ day to shine!”

“Don’t you think it’s Lulu’s day to shine?” Luke quipped, his mouth dangerously twitching into a grin. Kirk realized he wasn’t getting anywhere and changed his tactics to begging, “Please, Luke, please! It has to be you!”

Luke let his head fall forward and slowly exhaled. “What about your brothers? Why can’t one of them do it?”

“Because of the Gleason wedding rule. When James announced his engagement, a huge fight ensued over who gets to be the best man. It was a horrible time. For weeks nobody was safe. The pranks started harmless, but it got worse over time, you couldn’t walk around the house unarmed – or unprotected - anymore. It all ended when Matt had to be rushed to the hospital with a broken nose.”

Luke could vividly picture the Gleasons hunting each other down, the ones inflicting the most damage obviously being Matt and his twin brother. “Let me guess, Patrick’s doing?”

“No, Beth.”

“Beth?” Luke asked confused. “Beth is your sister…”

Luke was quite familiar with the Gleason clan, he grew up with them after all. Kirk arched one eyebrow and looked at Luke puzzled. “I know,” he said slowly, but Luke just stared back at him with the same baffled expression on his face. “Why was she involved in the fight over who gets to be best man?”

“I don’t know,” Kirk shrugged. Beth was the only girl in the family, and she had to be rather fierce sometimes to have a chance against her brothers. “I guess she just liked being part of the action.”

Luke chuckled, remembering Kirk’s sister fondly, “Yeah, that does sound like her.”

“That day mother created the rule that one brother cannot choose another brother – or Beth - as his best man.” Kirk looked at Luke with big hopeful eyes, making Luke almost regret his next words, “Kirk, I’m sorry, I can’t be your best man.”

Kirk’s face hardened and without breaking eye contact he said, “Oh well, that’s too bed. I guess I’ll see you at the wedding. It’s June third, by the way.”

It took Luke a moment to understand what Kirk had just said but then it clicked, “June third? You can’t get married on June third. _I_ get married on June third.”

“Really?” Kirk said, faking surprise. “My invitation must have gotten lost in the mail…”

Luke’s confusion grew as he was trying to figure out what kind of game Kirk was playing. “What are you talking about? You know the date. You’ve been to my engagement party. You _proposed_ at my engagement party!”

“Oh, right. That’s probably why the date sounded so familiar,” Kirk nodded to himself. His acting wasn’t very convincing, but he carried on with nonchalance. “It shouldn’t be a problem though, it’s not like you are my best man or anything, so there won’t be a conflict of interest.”

Luke couldn’t decide if Kirk was being serious or just tied to antagonize him. “I can’t believe I’m saying this but there _is_ a conflict of interest. You can’t get married on the same day!”

“Yes, I can and I will. I have all my invitations ready to send out. May the faster man win.” Kirk dramatically turned around and rushed out the door.

“Kirk! Kirk, get back here!” Luke shouted across the diner, but it was too late. “Ah, crap!”

\---

**HOME – MONDAY 28 TH – AFTERNOON**

“Lorelai!” Luke called out, storming into the house and stopping dead in his tracks when he saw her lying on the floor in front of the couch, back propped up on a pillow, legs on top of the couch, her hips dangling midair. It looked like the world’s most uncomfortable sit-up position. “What are you doing?”

Lorelai wriggled like a stranded -not whale – turtle, lying on its back. “Luke, Thank god! I tried a Yoga pose Dr. Santiago recommended to reduce lower back tension and it worked really well. That well in fact that I dozed off and now my legs are asleep I can’t get up anymore. I should have known that sport wasn’t a solution!”

Luke forgot his immediate frustration as he watched Lorelai swinging her arms from side to side, struggling to move the lower part of her body off the couch without much success. After another try she gave up and lay sprawled out on her back, looking rather helpless. Luke chuckled, earning a death stare and a pout from Lorelai. He carefully placed her legs on the floor and pulled her into a sitting position by the hands, at the same time taking a seat on the couch in front of her.

Lorelai groaned and rubbed her legs back to life. “Bless your timing! I was about to send Paul Anka to get Babette though I doubt he would’ve pulled off my rescue mission… If we ever get another dog it should be a St. Bernard. That’s a dog I’d trust with my life. And they have that cute barrel attached to the collar. It’s like a walking minibar.”

“I don’t think the dog generally comes with a barrel,” Luke smiled benignly. Not even her temporary imprisonment, albeit self-inflicted, broke her spirit. These days Lorelai was unshakeable, radiant and infectiously happy.

“Details…” Lorelai made a disregarding pout. “Hey, what brings you here?”

“What… Oh, right! We need to send out our wedding invitations.”

Out of a million guesses on why Luke could possibly show up at the house in the middle of the day, _that_ would not have made the list. Lorelai’s eyes went wide like saucers and her mouth hung open. “Uhm, sure… Okay… I just need you to finalize the guest list. On my side, I have everybody. The town, Rory and friends, my parents. On your side all I have is Jess, Liz, and TJ. But I’ve told you this already a hundred times.”

“And as _I_ have told _you_ a hundred times, there’s nobody I want to add.”

“Luke!”

“No! We’re not gonna have this discussion again. Just send out the invites.”

“What about friends?” Lorelai pushed on.

Luke slumped back on the sofa and folded his arms. “Everyone I know, you know.”

“What about Caesar? He’s a friend.”

“Caesar has to work.”

“You're not giving him the day off for your own wedding?”

“If I do, **_I_** can't go.”

Lorelai groaned in frustration, “You really should think about hiring more help. With this one arriving,” she patted her belly, “the wedding coming up and the honeymoon, which we _still_ have not talked about, you might need more support than just Caesar.”

“I can handle it.”

“One day your stubbornness will catch up with you and bite your ass.”

Luke tilted his head and asked, “Are you talking from experience?” Lorelai threw the pillow she had been lying on at Luke, but he easily caught it mid-air, a cocky smile spreading on his face. “So… you’re gonna send the invitations?”

Lorelai fixed him with an incredulous stare, “You really came here, in the middle of the day, to ask me that? What’s with the hurry?”

Luke dropped his chin to his chest and sighed, “Do you really have to know?”

“It concerns my wedding so _yes_!”

Another sigh. “Kirk asked me to be his best man, naturally I declined, because I don’t want to organize his wedding, hold a speech or be involved in any way, but what I didn’t see coming was Kirk threatening to steal our day if I do not cooperate.” After digesting what Luke had said, Lorelai burst out laughing, rolling on the floor. Luke frowned at her, “I’m glad you find this amusing.”

“It’s hilarious! You don’t seriously think Kirk is vile enough to pull this off?” she said, wiping away some tears.

“Of course not. There are darker forces at work…”

“Fine, if it makes you feel any better, I’ll get them out this week,” Lorelai told him and struggled to her feet. Luke got up us well and gave her a kiss, “Good, I gotta get back.” They walked together to the foyer and Luke opened the door but before he slipped out, he added, “You do have Buddy and Maisy on the list, right?”

Lorelai’s mouth fell wide open and she slapped his chest, “Luke! You said you’d checked the list!”

“I did!” Luke defended himself and tried to get a hold of her wrists as she continued poking and stabbing his chest with her fingers. “Ah, stop that! He giggled as she pinched his side. “I just don’t remember.” He finally caught her hands and pulled her flat against himself.

“You’re impossible,” she protested.

“Likewise,” he grinned cheekily and gave her a proper kiss. “Bye.”

Lorelai breathed in deeply and smiled, as she closed the door after him. Life was good.

\---

**LUKE’S DINER – TUESDAY 29 TH NOVEMBER - MORNING**

Luke stood at the stove, flipping pancakes, absorbed in thought when a thunderous voice screamed bloody murder, which sounded an awful lot like his name. His full name. Another sign that meant nothing good in his experience. He also knew that the owner of that voice had never ever set foot in his diner before. Luke swallowed hard. The clock might as well have struck his final hour.

Luke stepped through the kitchen door and into dead silence even though the diner was fairly packed. All eyes were on him, two icy blue ones bore directly into his soul. Luke swallowed again and fixed the elderly woman opposite him with a blank stare. “Mrs. Gleason – what can I do for you?”

The lady raised her chin a little higher and matched his frosty expression. She carried herself like a drill sergeant and was equally fear-inducing. “Oh, don’t act stupid, boy. You know _exactly_ why I’m here.”

Luke felt the collar around his neck tighten, tough his shirt wasn’t even buttoned up. “I do?” On second thought; she’d even make a drill sergeant tremble.

“My darling boy has gotten himself engaged and it’s all _your_ fault! I tried so hard to keep him out of harm’s way, but you had to go and encourage him! And now, for whatever godforsaken reason, he wants _you_ to be his best man and you **refuse**?!”

“Well… I…” Luke wanted to defend himself, but Mrs. Gleason silenced him with the snip of her fingers. “Shut it, Lucas! I don’t want to hear it! You took the girl he wanted, you took the house he wanted, you even took the ring he wanted and now you want to sabotage his wedding! I’ve had it! You grew up to be just like your father. A selfish, pigheaded idiot!”

Her voice had risen with every word, and she was shouting now with full force. It was no secret that Mrs. Gleason had despised William Danes with a passion. They had been what one would call arch enemies for as long as Luke could remember. It also was not the first time, that he found himself on the receiving end of her wrath. Luke had gotten into trouble quite often as a kid and even more often one of the Gleason boys was involved. Therefore, the next blow took him by surprise.

“I’m just glad your mother isn’t here to see this. She’d be _very_ disappointed. She’s probably turning over in her grave as we speak,” the small woman sneered.

While there was no love lost between Mrs. Gleason and his father, Kate had always managed to smooth things over, usually with the help of lots of tea and cake. Using her as leverage shook Luke to the core and he felt the prick of tears behind his eyes. “How dare you,” he gritted out, barely keeping it together.

“I don’t have time for your dramatics, so listen closely; you will be Kirk’s best man and he will look for another date and I swear to god, Lucas if you ruin his day, I will ruin your business. Are we understood?”

Luke was about to ruin his business all on his own by strangling the woman over the countertop. To his own surprise he heard his tormented voice answer in the affirmative.

Mrs. Gleason pursed her lips and leaned in a little closer. “I didn’t hear you.” Her eyes sparkled like black diamonds.

Every fiber of Luke’s body stood in flames and he clenched his jaw so hard he tasted blood. “Yes, Ma’am,” he grounded out a little louder, trembling all over.

A devilish smile spread over her pink-colored lips that matched her coat and skirt. “Good.” Mrs. Gleason turned around and strode out the door with her head held high.

Luke stared after her, seething. It took several minutes before he could move again, her words echoed through the silence of the room. With one swift movement, he disappeared into the kitchen and the next thing the diner patrons heard was the repeated slamming of hard materials against each other. Everyone without exception paid what they were due by leaving cash on the table and then they left without so much as a word. Whatever was being murdered in that kitchen, nobody wanted to be next.

\---

Luke locked the diner and crossed the town square with a brisk pace. After he had thoroughly destroyed a cast iron skillet and had sufficiently calmed down, he was surprised to see how late it was. There hadn’t been a single customer all afternoon and he saw no point in keeping the diner open.

He sharply rounded a corner and before his brain could catch up, he had grabbed the oncoming figure by the lapels and shoved up against the wall.

“You brought your mother into this?!” he screamed into the pale face of Kirk, who looked startled and terrified in equal measures.

“Luke, no, please, don’t hurt me. I told her to stay out of this, but she wouldn’t listen, please,” Kirk stammered, holding both hands up defensively.

“She brought _my_ mother into this!! What did I ever do to you?!?” Luke continued shouting, holding Kirk in a death grip.

“Luke, I’m sorry, she went too far but please…”

Luke gave Kirk one last angry shove before letting go with a growl. He turned his back to Kirk who slid down the wall limply. Luke folded his fingers behind his neck and squeezed his head between his arms, willing himself to stop shaking. “Of all the days,” he muttered, walking in circles. “Of all the _fucking_ days!”

“Luke, you’re scaring me,” Kirk peeped from his cowering position.

Luke slowly came back to his senses, feeling emotionally drained and tired. He dropped his arms and turned towards Kirk. “Why? Why does it have to be me?”

Kirk struggled to his feet but averted eye contact. “You’re my best friend, Luke. You’re the only one I trust. I know I’m not your best friend, I mean, nothing beats the friendship you two have, but I still consider us close friends. Pals if you want. Amigos?”

Luke rubbed one hand over his face, feeling awful. Here he was scaring Kirk half to death and in return got rewarded the title of ‘best friend’. If he could kick his own ass, he would, but self-loathing will have to do. “Kirk, I… I’m so sorry. I didn’t mean to…” Luke sighed, “Of course we’re friends but… wait, who did you think _is_ my best friend and _please_ , don’t say Taylor?”

Kirk furrowed his brows and wondered briefly if Luke really didn’t know. “Lorelai,” he said pointedly and watched the realization dawn on Luke’s face. “And believe me, if she were a man, I’d totally ask her but -”

“Well, why don’t you ask her?” Luke interrupted.

“Is that allowed?” Kirk asked suspiciously and Luke shrugged, “Rory was best man at her grandparents' vow renewal thing. It’s your wedding, Kirk. You can do whatever you want.”

Luke could see the wheels turning in Kirk’s head and nodded invitingly to the gravel road also known as Maple Street. “Tell you what, Kirk; why don’t you come in, have a drink and we can work this out.”

Kirk’s eyes shone brightly, and he eagerly followed Luke up the path. “Hey, Luke?”

“Yeah?”

“When you say ‘drink’ you mean..?”

“Whisky, Kirk. I mean Whisky.”

\---

**HOME - WEDNESDAY 30 TH NOVEMBER**

Lorelai woke up early feeling rested and energized, which wasn’t normal for her. Especially not after having had the late shift last night. She rolled over in bed, looking for Luke’s warm body but only found cold, empty sheets. Knowing what day it was, it shouldn’t have surprised her to find him gone. She knew that Luke valued his privacy and she definitely respected his need for solitude but still wished she could do something for him. She wanted to be there for him like he always was for her. Be his rock for a change. Maybe one day, she sighed and jumped out of bed, wrapped the fluffy morning gown around her and stuck her feet into plushy slippers. She skipped down the stairs, the smell of coffee hanging in the air. Goodness, she thought, she started to imagine things. She rubbed her belly and sighed. At least the end of the caffeine-less hell was slowly but surely coming to an end. Luke had been way stricter about the whole no-coffee rule than she had expected, though why she’d expected anything less was beyond her. In the early months, she had hidden stashes, but Luke had found them all. All, except ONE! _And_ he wasn’t going to be home all day, which meant she had enough time to air the kitchen and wash the machine thoroughly, so the smell wouldn’t give her away! Her morning suddenly appeared to be much sunnier.

She grabbed the coffee pot with a lot of vigor – and almost emptied its content all over the kitchen floor. The brown liquid sloshed around dangerously and with a loud ‘thud’ Lorelai managed to set the pot down on the kitchen counter. Her mind took another second to catch up, then she notices the bright pink sticky note taped to the coffee maker.

Interesting hiding place.  
Breakfast in the oven.  
I’ll be back by 10 pm.  
Luke.

Lorelai suddenly was overcome with emotions and wanted to cry. Even on his worst day, he took such good care of her. A big happy tear rolled down her cheek and she wiped it away with the sleeve of her gown. Quickly a mug was filled, and the still warm pancakes were extracted from the oven and drowned in maple syrup. Lorelai took a bite and moaned. If it was possible, Luke made even better pancakes at home.

All that was missing to complete a morning of pure bliss was the paper. She downed half her coffee and shoved another huge bite into her mouth before grabbing the keys off the hallway desk and opening the door. Lorelai stopped on the threshold and almost choked on her mouthful upon being greeted by an olive-green jacket and a blue baseball cap.

“Luke?” she asked, worry tainting her voice.

He didn’t move or acknowledge her presence in any way, just silently kept sitting on the porch steps, staring into nothingness. Lorelai walked gingerly towards him, keeping some distance to not startle him and sat down. “Luke? What are you doing here?”

He had his hands clasped together, elbows resting on his knees, a faraway look in his eyes. “I couldn’t leave.”

“Why not?”

A shadow crossed his face and his whole body tensed up for just a second. Sadness, grief, anger, frustration? Lorelai wasn’t sure. Luke released a long breath and Lorelai waited for him to collect his thoughts and when he finally looked at her, the darkness had gone. “You know I love you, right?”

Lorelai’s eyebrows shot up in surprise, “I do. But it’s nice to hear that once in a while.”

“I love you and that’s why I can’t do this anymore,” Luke said earnestly, making Lorelai freeze next to him and not because she was outdoors in her pajamas. Her surprise turned into shock and Luke quickly realized how his words sounded. “Oh, God, no! I mean vanish for a day like that, not us! Geez, Lorelai!”

Lorelai sucked in some cold air, scolding herself for letting her mind even go there. She maybe could get away with blaming it on hormones. She had earlier cried over Luke’s coffee gesture after all. Luke had turned to his original pose, staring into the distance. He felt he had to explain himself better but couldn’t do it when seeing all the emotions play out on Lorelai’s face.

“The first anniversary of Dad’s death was – horrible. I think it was even worse than the funeral. Everyone expected me to fall apart and the pity looks… I couldn’t stand it. I mean, who likes being told how you’re supposed to feel?! It was suffocating! So, the following year I just left town very early and basically hid all day. The next day they gave me some crap about disrespecting my father’s memory, but over the years it got better. People forgot the exact date and I am out of town pretty regularly so at some point nobody really remembered. Most people that remember my parents aren’t living here anymore anyway but I kept going away. It was just – easier. As a single guy, living alone, nobody expected me to be around, but things change and it’s not just me anymore. Lorelai, I’m not good with, uh… _things_ , but I’m better with you.”

“Oh, Luke,” Lorelai breathed, laid her head on his shoulder and wrapped herself around his arm. “I’m here for you, whatever you need, but you have to know that it’s really okay if you want to be alone.”

Luke leaned his head against hers and whispered into her hair, “I don’t want to be alone.”

Luke brought one hand up to cup her jaw and pulling her in for a kiss, but Lorelai jerked his hand away and sat up straight. “Jesus, Luke, you’re frozen! How long have you been sitting out here?!”

Luke winced a little, he had forgotten about time. “Uh… since sunrise?”

“And when’s that?!”

“Around seven.” Luke chewed his lip and dropped his head. At least he had the decency to look ashamed, Lorelai thought. “Lu-uke, it’s after nine! You’ll catch your death!” She jumped to her feet and grimaced, “Sorry, bad choice of words,” and tugged more forcefully at his hand. Luke followed slowly, his whole body was stiff, and he let Lorelai drag him into the warm kitchen and push him down on a chair.

“You didn’t eat your breakfast,” he commented on the half-eaten plate of pancakes that was still sitting on the kitchen table.

“Oh, well, I got a little sidetracked…” Lorelai shrugged, busying herself with the kettle.

“Sorry.”

“That’s okay, I can still eat it.” To prove her point she took the fork and shoved a bite into her mouth. The pancakes were delicious even when cold. The teapot whistled and Lorelai poured a cup, setting it in front of Luke, who wrapped his frozen fingers around it immediately. Lorelai poured herself some more coffee and sat down.

“Luke, what do you usually do on uh… today?”

“Usually?” Luke cleared his throat. “I visit the cemetery on my way out of town and then I go fishing, or hiking, or I just drive. One time the weather was awful, and I sat in a public library all day. Another year I actually spent the day in a shopping center to distract myself.”

“Really? Did it work?” Lorelai had a hard time picturing Luke wandering around a mall for an entire day, voluntarily.

“Do you still have that scarf I gave you for Christmas some years ago? I bought it that day.”

“Of course I do! I love that scarf.” It was a long, knitted scarf in a shade of blue that matched her eyes. She thought it to be one of the better gifts Luke had given her over the years. “I can’t believe you thought of me on your dark day,” she said, smiling shyly into her cup, feeling a blush creeping up her neck.

“Lorelai – I always think of you.”

Lorelai almost dropped her mug and stared at Luke with her mouth slightly agape. “Oh. My. God! That has to be the cheesiest thing you’ve ever said!”

Luke let out a short hearty laugh. “Hey, you can’t mock me today.”

“Sorry,” Lorelai grinned, glad to see Luke smile again.

“Listen, I know you probably have plans for today and you really don’t have to babysit me. You do your thing and I’ll be here. I don’t want to be in your way, I just didn’t want to hide. Not from you anyway. I’m happy to stay clear of the diner for the next 24 hours.”

It sounded like there was more to it than Luke simply avoiding the town for the day and Lorelai eyed him suspiciously, “Did something happen?”

“Rather someone,” he grumbled and made a face as if bile had risen in his throat.

“Does it have anything to do with your late-night visitor?” Lorelai nodded towards the Whisky bottle, which still stood on the kitchen counter.

“Ah, that was Kirk. I invited him over for a few drinks.”

Lorelai thought she was hearing things. “Kirk? Our Kirk? The town Kirk?”

“Yes, that’s the one. And I have great news; you are his new best man - or woman. Well, second best, I’m still first best, but you get to hold the speech!”

Lorelai’s mouth fell open. “You’re kidding? How did that happen?!”

Luke recounted his most unpleasant encounter with Mrs. Gleason, the destruction of kitchen wear, the shouting match with Kirk and the subsequent drinking and wedding planning. The two men had ended the night with the agreement that Jess and Kirk will be Luke’s best men and Luke and Lorelai will be Kirk’s. Lorelai had listened intently and couldn’t make up her mind which part of the story shocked her the most. She had heard stories of Mrs. Gleason over the years, but nothing ever came close to what Luke had just laid before her. She finally understood why nobody dared speaking ill of Kirk’s mother. “And I thought my mother was bad…” Lorelai mumbled.

“You know there’s a reason why none of the other Gleason children are living here. They escaped her dictatorship as soon as possible.”

“Poor Kirk… So when is he finally getting married?”

“Turns out June third was an empty threat. Lulu would have never gone along with it. They’re aiming for August since she is off work during summer anyway.”

“Oh, nice. Speaking of which, I was gonna place the order for the wedding invitations today. Do you wanna come?”

Luke wanted to object that he did not need a pity-invite, but when he met her blue eyes, he only saw an open and honest invitation. “You sure you don’t mind?”

“I never say no to a personal driver,” Lorelai smiled, “And I thought, maybe, on our way out of town we could stop by the cemetery…” She looked down, fiddled with her gown’s sash and added hastily, “If you want of course. I can even wait in the car to give you some privacy.”

Luke stilled her hands by taking them in his and gave them a reassuring squeeze. “Don’t be ridiculous. I’d like you to come.”

“Yeah? Good. I think it’s time I met my in-laws.”

\---

They walked arm in arm up the hill over the crisp lawn of the cemetery. The morning fog was still hanging in the trees and bushes like cotton balls and the grey sky created an eerie atmosphere. They reached a gravel path and Luke stopped in front of three identical headstones. “Here they are. I guess you remember Uncle Louie over there,” he nodded to the far left one.

“Of course.” Lorelai didn’t know what to expect next and that uncertainty scared here just the tiniest bit. Lorelai knew Luke in and out but even she had never seen a sad Luke. Well, she had seen him normal sad, but not grief-stricken sad. Lorelai felt her throat tighten and she focused her gaze on the horizon. She wondered if he’d normally cry, but she couldn’t picture it. She had only seen Luke cry once and those had been happy tears at Rory’s graduation. Could she handle a crying Luke? Would he feel comfortable crying in front of her? Before she could drive herself crazy any further, she felt herself being watched and looked up. “What?”

Luke was gazing down at her, a small smile playing on his lips. “Nothing. Just a funny memory of the last time we were here.”

Lorelai arched an eyebrow and thought back to Louie Danes’ funeral. Kirk trying to play the trumpet had been a little funny but apart from that nothing came to mind. “Care to enlighten me?”

“We stood over there, much like now, you held my arm, we watched the firing squad, and you looked so… it was… ah hell, I wanted to kiss you.”

Lorelai’s eyebrows sprung upwards and her mouth fell open. That was not what she’d call a ‘funny memory’. Luke’s left hand suddenly was cradling her head and then his lips were hot on hers. Lorelai’s eyes closed on their own accord and she forgot temporarily where they were. Just temporarily though. “Luke! Not in front of your parents!” she gasped and leaned as far back as she could, but Luke kept her firmly attached to his side and cocked his head, “They can hardly blame me for kissing my fiancée.” Lorelai was overcome with his cheekiness and before she could protest any further Luke kissed her again.

Any other day, Luke would not have kissed her like that in public, but his emotions were all over the place and he couldn’t help himself. He didn’t want to deep dive into the darkness that usually enclosed him on that day, so he held on to the one thing that always made him happy. Lorelai was his beacon and if he kept her close maybe, just maybe, the pain wouldn’t hit him as hard as it usually did.

Luke’s kisses became more urgent and somewhere in her fogged brain, Lorelai realized that Luke was buying time. She didn’t want to break the bubble, but they could not get carried away and ravish each other on the nearest park bench. “Luke, stop,” she whispered against his lips and felt him stiffen directly. He leaned his forehead against hers and kept his eyes closed. “Sorry.”

“Don’t be.” She placed a soft kiss on his cheek and turned towards the headstones again. “So, are you going to introduce us?”

“What? No, that’s silly.”

“But how else will they know who I am?”

Luke chuckled, “Trust me, they know. If they have, as you say, the Luke monitor on, they’ll have seen plenty of you.”

Lorelai gasped, “Dirty!”

“Not like that!” Luke called out and hoped they did not have a monitor up there after all. They stood in silence for a while until Lorelai said, “I wish I had known them.”

“Yeah me too. I think you’d have gotten along well. My mom’s a lot like Liz. Less Hippie but same spirit. And you know what people say about me being like Dad, although I hope that’s not entirely true.”

“What do you mean?” Lorelai remembered that Luke had said something similar not too long ago.

“I love my dad. He was a good father in the sense of providing for his family. He was kind and respected, but he also had a temper which apparently runs in the family. He probably drank too much. Definitely smoked too much. He was very social, loved this town and all its craziness. But emotionally he was distant. Never talked about feelings, because you know, that’s not what men do. The first and only time he ever opened up about Mom was the day before he died. We made it out here all the way from the hospital because he wanted to bring her flowers like every year. The doctors said it wasn’t a good idea but go figure. He’s a Danes, too stubborn for his own good. So we made it, sat on that bench and talked - for hours. We both knew that it was just a matter of time till he’d join her. The next day he didn’t wake up.”

Lorelai took a closer look at the headstones and noticed the dates for the first time. “Oh, Luke, I had no idea your mother’s anniversary was yesterday.”

“I know it’s not fair to only come here today but I can’t stand here two days in a row. If that makes me a bad son, then so be it.”

“It doesn’t.” Lorelai gripped Luke’s arm more firmly, “Luke, it doesn’t. I’m sure they understand.”

“I hope so. I do miss them both but it’s different. When I think of my mom, I remember her through the eyes of a child. All the memories are happy and - perfect. When she died, I had Liz and Dad, and we went through it together. But when he died - I had nobody. I sat in that hospital for months and watched him slowly fade away but when he finally passed on, I wasn’t ready. I had never felt more alone in my life.”

His voice did not waver, nor did his posture change, but the pain that was radiating off Luke was all-encompassing. A small teardrop ran down his cheek and disappeared into the stubbles. Lorelai fought back her own tears as her heart ached for the 24-year-old Luke who sat alone in a hospital room, crying beside his father’s deathbed. She wished she could travel back in time and give him a hug, dry his tears, and tell him that he was not alone. But all she could do was hold him in the present, as Luke Danes, the strongest man she knew, mourned the loss of his parents – once again.

\---

**DRAGONFLY INN – LATER THAT DAY**

Lorelai walked into the lobby of the Dragonfly inn and was greeted by an impatient Michel who had been waiting for her arrival. He was already wearing his coat and an Ushanka – a Russian felt hat - sat atop his head. “You are late, and I have to go!” he barked and followed Lorelai to the check-in desk.

“I’m sorry, I’m sorry, I’m sorry! Mailing those invites took longer than expected, but I’m here now. You’re free to go,” Lorelai said hurriedly and flung her coat into the corner behind the desk. Her eyes were already scanning the task list.

“I can’t.”

Lorelai looked up and thought she was having a déjà vu but with the wrong man, “Why can’t you leave Michel?”

“There is a gentleman caller here for you. He has been very insistent in waiting for you and since you are marrying the burger man, I thought it be fun to watch how you send him on his way.”

Lorelai rolled her eyes, “And where is this _gentleman_ now?”

“I last saw him in the library,” Michel smirked and motioned her to go ahead.

Lorelai was curious who had been waiting for her, hoping that it was not her father. With big strides, she took a sharp corner and almost bumped into an oncoming person. “Logan?!”

“Lorelai!” Logan jumped, “I was waiting for you. Do you have a minute?”

“Uhm…” She saw Michel standing in the corner with a dumb grin on his face. “Yes, in my office.” They walked back through the lobby, passing Michel who muttered ‘spoilsport’ under his breath. “Goodbye, Michel,” Lorelai quipped over her shoulder and ushered Logan into her office, shutting the door firmly behind her. She turned around and crossed her arms over her chest. “Your minute starts now.”

Logan read her body language and understood. “I guess you’ve heard what happened…”

Lorelai fixed Logan with an angry glare. “That you broke up with Rory through your sister? Yes, I’ve heard. And I have to say, I expected more of you.”

“Well, that’s the thing, I didn’t!” Logan blurted out, dissolving Lorelai’s I’m-in-control demeanor. “You didn’t what?”

“Break up! I didn’t! It’s a misunderstanding which I’ve been trying to rectify but nothing’s working. She won’t take my calls, she won’t talk to me, and Paris is protecting her like a guard dog. But I'm not giving up until I exhaust all my options and asking for your help is one of them.”

Lorelai lifted one hand to stop Logan, “Hold on. You _didn’t_ tell your sister that you broke up?!”

The boy flinched, “That part’s technically true… My sister only reacts to strong statements and I didn’t want to discuss our fight on Thanksgiving, so I told a little white lie to get her off my back. I didn’t expect her to immediately call Rory!”

Lorelai whistled through her teeth, “You dug yourself a deep, deep hole.”

“I know…” Logan’s shoulders sagged, and the boy shrunk several inches. Lorelai couldn’t help but enjoy seeing the great Logan Huntzberger looking defeated. And so she did what any good mother would do: make the boy who hurt her daughter suffer just a little more, “And now you're seriously here to ask for my help? This is not a joke?”

Logan squirmed under the scrutinizing gaze of Lorelai and exclaimed in despair, “I'm going for broke here!”

Lorelai took a deep breath and contemplated her options. If Rory never wanted to speak to Logan again, then that was her choice and Lorelai didn’t want to meddle. What she could do, was give her daughter some advice. What Rory did with it, was up to her.

\---

**LUKE’S DINER – FRIDAY 2 ND DECEMBER - EVENING**

Lorelai was sitting at the counter in her usual spot drinking coffee, Luke stood behind the counter reading a piece of paper with a serious face when Rory walked in and sat next to Lorelai. “Since when are we sitting here?” she asked.

“No kisses? No ‘hello mother’?” Lorelai complained and pushed her empty cup away.

“Sorry,” Rory pecked her mother on the cheek and greeted Luke, who just nodded without looking up. “So, your letter. Oh, my God. It was brilliant. It has got to be anthologized. I'm telling you. And he definitely did not read it because he looked flummoxed. Flummoxed! The whole time I was reading it, and I didn't tell him a thing about it. That's what he gets. So, come on. I want to hear all about his visit with you!”

Before Lorelai could say anything, Luke slammed with a fist on the counter and shouted, “You can’t be serious!?”

Rory startled at Luke’s outburst and asked confused, “Why not?”

“Not you,” Luke said apologetically then immediately narrowed his eyes and glared at Lorelai. “Your mother. She’s gone insane!”

Lorelai looked highly amused and said with a mocking tone, “Insane? How dare you!”

Rory looked between the two and scrunched up her nose. “Okay, what am I missing here?”

“Luke is reading my baby name list,” Lorelai grinned with an up-to-no-good glint in her eyes.

“And we'll talk about the letter later. What!?” Rory gasped and snatched the crumpled piece of paper out of Luke’s hand.

“Look at it!” Luke demanded, is head turned slightly red. “There are seventeen versions of Lorelai as a male name. Seventeen!”

Lorelai winked at Rory who had started scanning through it, “Lorelord is my favorite.”

“And then she started mixing Luke and Lorelai to create new names. You can’t even pronounce half of them! And when you think the joke’s over and she’s got it out of her system, _it gets worse!_ ” Luke continued ranting, his face reaching a dark shade of red.

“So, you are not a fan of Diner Danes?” Lorelai asked offendedly but couldn’t hide her smirk.

“Diner?! You can’t name our son Diner, nor Coffee, nor Pancake! Those are things not names!” Luke hissed and narrowed his eyes even further.

“But there are _normal_ names on the list too!” Lorelai protested, but Luke just shook his head and barked, “Leopold, Balthazar, Ludwig, Napoleon!? We are **_not_** European monarchs!”

Rory had finished looking over the list and put the paper down, pointing at one name. “I think Flannel Danes is pretty cute,” she shrugged and smiled at Luke’s rage.

“Don’t encourage her!” Luke protested and pointed a finger at Lorelai. “You are writing me another list!”

“Oh, come on. It took me ages to come up with that many male Lorelai versions!”

“You’re impossible!” Luke yelled, threw his hands up in the air, and retreating into the kitchen, leaving the two women giggling over the list.

\---

**WINTER CARNIVAL – MID-DECEMBER - EVENING**

Lorelai and Rory were standing next to a big wheel of fortune. Paul Anka, the dog, was dressed like a sultan with a small shimmery turban on his head and a little matching vest. Lane had just spun the wheel, which Paul Anka stopped with his paw. Lorelai took the chosen scroll of paper that was attached to the wheel and read aloud, “You will sing songs of gemstones.”

“How do you sing songs of gemstones?” Rory laughed and Lorelai stuttered, “Ah, I was a little tired when I wrote this one. Sorry. You want to pick another one? Swami do-overs are allowed.”

Lane took her fortune and mused, “No, I'll stick with this one. It's got an air of mystery.”

Rory noticed Luke across the crowd looking a bit lost and waved him over. “Hey, Luke, want Swami Doggy to read your fortune?”

Luke trotted closer and looked at the poor dog in his costume. “Uh, maybe some other time.” He walked around their booth to greet Lorelai with a small kiss and nodded towards the festival. “Can we walk a little bit?”

Lorelai took his hand and left Rory in charge. After a few steps Luke turned to her and cleared his throat, which signaled to Lorelai that he was nervous. “I have finished my list, but I am only giving it to you if you give me your _real_ list. I know you have one,” Luke said making her understand that he was serious, but Lorelai wouldn’t be Lorelai if she gave in that easily. “Whatever do you mean? Didn’t you like any of my options? I still think Lorelord would be a winner!”

“Be serious for a moment, I’m begging you,” Luke pleaded, and Lorelai surrendered, pulling a folded piece of paper out of her jacket pocket. “Fine, show me yours, I’ll show you mine,” she grinned and twirled the piece of paper between her fingers.

“Dirty?” he frowned.

“Luke! I thought this was serious?!” she teased, and Luke rolled his eyes. They exchanged papers and stood in silence for a while reading and re-reading the names they had each written down. Luke broke the silence first. “You only wrote down three names,” he stated, surprised that she had managed to narrow it down that much.

“And I am dead serious about all three of them,” Lorelai assured him, but Luke didn’t quite believe her. He pointed at the first name on her list and said, “You know that it’s okay if you don’t like it. You don’t have to pretend… It’d mean a lot but it’s just a name…”

Lorelai nodded reassuringly. “I’m serious. Look,” She covered part of the word with her index finger and explained, “Like this it looks like a different name. Similar to what I did with Rory. An elegant name with an upgraded nickname.”

“Huh,” Luke pondered, not entirely convinced. “What do you think of mine?”

“Apart from the obvious one, why did you choose the others?”

“Because I like them.”

“Come on Luke. Humor me.”

Luke shook his head and exhaled slowly before answering. “Uuh… James because… uhm, James T. Kirk is -”

“Ah, you’re favorite Star Trek character. You should have added Kirk to the list as well. What’s fair is fair,” Lorelai laughed and Luke did not look pleased, “I am not naming my kid Kirk.”

“Okay. Next?”

Luke sighed, “Uh, Steve, because… well, Captain America is my favorite -”

“Revenger!” Lorelai quipped and Luke laughed out loud. “Almost.”

“Don’t tell me Jacob, Thomas, and Scott are also all superheroes,” Lorelai grimaced.

“No, believe it or not, I do like those names. So, what do you think?”

“Well, let’s see…” Lorelai contemplated the list and tapped her lips with her index finger. “James Danes doesn’t have the right flow,” she finally said, making Luke raise an eyebrow, “The right flow?”

“Yeah it rhymes, Luke. Makes it sound like a cartoon character, like Duffy Duck or Humpty Dumpty. Next is Steve… I just don’t like it, I’m sorry.”

“That’s okay.”

“Jacob Danes. I like that. Jacob. Jake. Jake and Luke. Luke and Jake…” Lorelai mused out loud, testing the taste of the name on her tongue. She decided that they fit together and continued checking the list. “Now, we can’t take Thomas, there’s already a Tom in Stars Hollow.

“So? There’s probably another Jacob too.”

“But not one we’re close to. I like Andrew as a name but there’s already Andrew. That’s just a no-go for me,” she explained, and Luke shook his head, “Ay ay ay.”

“About Scott… We can’t name our son Scott Danes. He’d have to explain all his life that he isn’t half Scottish, half Danish. If we were, it would be a very elaborate joke, but since we’re not it’s just misleading.”

Luke blinked several times and scratched the back of his neck. “Your mind is a scary place.”

“Thank you,” Lorelai beamed.

“You do realize that you just reduced my list from six down to two names?”

“Yep! Call me efficient! So, what do we do now? Take them both?

“Both? What about your list?!”

“We take the name we have in common as first name and that one as middle name.”

“Really?” Luke was surprised. They had been talking about names for weeks without getting anywhere and now it suddenly felt so final. Lorelai must have caught his hesitation and said, “We don’t have to decide right now. Sleep on it.”

A loving smile spread over Luke’s face and he pulled Lorelai closer. “Sleep on it we will,” he whispered and placed a soft warm kiss on her lips. Luke’s warm breath tickled Lorelai’s cold nose and she wrapped her arms more tightly around his middle. They kissed affectionately until Lorelai had to giggle, “I think it might be a health-code violation, kissing this close to the cotton candy booth.”

Their faces were still very close, and Luke had to pull himself together not to kiss her again. “And we care because?”

“Taylor might walk by and give us a fine. Besides I have to get back to my Doggy Swami.”

Luke sighed and reluctantly let her out of his embrace. “I’ll see you later,” he said and pecked her on the lips before walking away. Lorelai looked happily after him.

\---

**⁂CHRISTMAS BONUS SCENE** **⁂**

**HOME – SUNDAY 25 TH DECEMBER - MORNING**

Lorelai sat on the floor in front of the Christmas tree in the living room and held a small bag up to Luke, who sat on the couch next to Rory. “Another one for me?” Luke looked surprised.

“Yeah, well, we like to spoil you,” Lorelai grinned and dangled the bag in front of his nose.

Luke gently placed the present on his lap and removed the tissue paper before reaching into the paper bag. He pulled out a blue baseball cap with green under brim. It was the exact same model he wore every day. “Is this your subtle way of telling me to get rid of the old one?”

“NO! Not at all!” Lorelai interjected. “This is just a back-up, or you can switch between them… Whatever you want. I just thought you might like an alternative, so the original blue hat lasts longer.”

A wide smile spread over Luke’s face and he said lovingly, “Thank you.”

“And so you don’t mix them up I left a little message on the inside,” Lorelai winked and Luke hoped it was nothing dirty. He turned the hat around and found the white stitching on the sweatband. ‘To a decade of love and friendship:1995-2005’. Luke suddenly found it hard to breath and were those tears forming in the corners of his eyes? He hadn’t realized that he had met the Gilmore girls ten years ago and now he could almost call himself family. Luke swallowed the lump in his throat and quickly blinked several times. He placed the hat on his head – backwards of course – and raised his mug, “To love and friendship.”

Lorelai beamed up at him and they toasted with eggnog and ginger tea.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> 'Tis the season to be jolly!  
> Therefore I apologize for the sadness within this chapter and shower you with warm hugs!  
> Also, sorry if you've pictured Mrs. Gleason differently... While writing she somehow turned into Umbridge and I couldn't get that image out of my head. Oh well... 🤷♀️ Stars Hollow will survive the one villain.  
> Thank you for sticking around, dear readers, and here a little spoiler: next chapter you'll meet LJ. 😉


	11. A Vineyard Valentine

**MARTHA’S VINEYARD – FRIDAY 10 TH FEBRUARY 2006 - EVENING**

“Hello?” Lorelai yelled into the empty entrance hall of the Huntzberger beach house.

Rory rounded a corner and enthusiastically pulled her mother into the house and into a tight hug. “Here you are! We’ve been expecting you all afternoon!”

“Yeah well,” Lorelai rolled her eyes and pointed over her shoulder at Luke. “Grandpa here didn’t drive faster than 20 miles per hour.”

“We shouldn’t be here in the first place…” Luke grumbled back and kicked the door closed with his boot. He held bags in both hands and looked annoyed. Lorelai had been reading the whole tour guide aloud to him during the drive, attempting to get Luke into the mood for a romantic weekend, but without much success. Luke’s worries were two-fold; he didn’t feel comfortable staying at a stranger’s house, especially when that stranger was Rory’s boyfriend who didn’t have the best of reputations. Secondly, he didn’t feel comfortable being trapped on an island with Lorelai’s due date being just a week away. While Lorelai had been beyond excited to spend a weekend away with Rory, he felt like he was the only one being rational.

“Ignore him!” Lorelai laughed and wrapped one arm around Rory. “I’m glad we took the trip. I can use some peace and quiet before this hurricane arrives,” Lorelai said and rubbed her free hand over her belly. The last month had proven that the combined power of Lorelai’s restlessness and Luke’s stamina created a world-class kickboxer. She had the bruises to prove it.

“Hey, there's our intrepid travelers,” Logan joined in and welcomed them with a smile. They shook hands and exchanged friendly smiles. Lorelai hadn’t seen Logan since he came to the Dragonfly, but according to Rory’s tales all was well on the western front and she had even stressed that it had been Logan’s idea to invite them all. Lorelai wasn’t sure if it was more a peace offering or bribery to get on her good side again, but in the end, she didn’t care as it meant a free weekend on Martha’s Vineyard.

“You guys want a tour?” Rory asked and led them deeper into the house, explaining its quirks and peculiarities, ending the tour at their room, that she named the king and queen’s suite in the spur of the moment. Lorelai shot a smile at Luke, who at least had stopped frowning.

Logan and Rory retreated, giving them space to unpack and get comfortable. Lorelai went into the ensuite bathroom, marveling at the luxury of the house. Luke had hung up his jacket, taken off his boots and sat on the bed, playing with his fingers, unsure what to do with himself. Lorelai came out of the bathroom and peered out the windows, trying to see more of the property.

“So - are we supposed to stay in this room tonight?” Luke asked.

“Um, what's wrong with the room?”

“Nothing, it’s just that it’s only 9:30.”

“It’s that early? Wow, it’s pitch black out here,” she nodded towards the windows and Luke joined her. The light of the room only illuminated a few meters of the land, so all they could see was the wooden porch, some bushes, and grass. The rest was swallowed by darkness. Neither the moon nor a single star was visible, which wasn’t surprising as it had been rather cloudy all day. They could hear the rhythmic rolling of the waves though, so the beach couldn’t be too far. Lorelai snuggled into Luke’s side and although he reciprocated the hug, she could feel how tense he was. “Luke, could you at least _try_ to relax? I don’t know if you realized, but this could be the last weekend where it’s just the two of us.”

“Do _you_ realize that?” Luke snapped back and Lorelai sighed.

“I’m fine,” she assured him. “I feel great. I’d feel even better if you had at least a little bit of fun.” Lorelai smiled, her hands had found their way under his shirt and she ran them up and down his back.

Lorelai was right, this was very likely the last time he truly had her all to himself and he’d be a fool to let that opportunity just pass by. Her administrations and the look in her eyes made his tensions fall away.

“I think I can handle a little bit of fun,” he smirked and with one swift movement, he scooped her up into his arms and marched her over to the bed. After all, it was very good practice to test a mattress before committing to it for a full night’s sleep.

\---

Luke walked into the living room, relieved to find Rory and Logan in upright positions, several feet apart. In fact, they weren’t even on the same couch. Rory sat in one of the armchairs, reading a book while Logan occupied the one opposite her with a laptop on his knees.

“Hey, uh, your mother’s taking a shower now and I thought I’d let you know because of the water thing,” Luke said, feeling uncomfortable having to announce Lorelai’s current state of undress to the whole house. Rory had told them that the water heater could only manage one shower at a time and a heads-up was greatly appreciated if one did not want to end up as a popsicle.

“She’s got a full boiler to herself,” Rory smiled and noticed Luke looking a bit lost in the room, standing there with his hands shoved into the front pockets of his jeans. “Join us,” she nodded towards the larger sofa. “I haven’t seen you since Christmas, how are things?”

Luke hesitantly took a seat and answered, “Good. Normal.” He folded his arms over his chest and sat rather stiffly, which made Rory internally roll her eyes. Since he had moved in with them, their relationship outside the diner had improved and their interactions had become less awkward. Seeing each other right after getting up and sharing space had helped. But whenever you took Luke out of his comfort zone, he shucked his defensive monosyllabic armor right back on.

“Good. Normal’s good…” Rory repeated uncomfortably and searched for something to get the conversation flowing. “Do you have any plans for tomorrow?” It was the most generic question but to Rory’s relief, Luke answered with a full sentence and mentioned the lighthouses.

“Oh, the Edgartown Lighthouse is right at the end of this beach. It’s a nice walk and you should check out the town as well. I also recommend the Gay Head Lighthouse. It’s at the other end of the island but you can drive there. Can you pull up a map?” she asked Logan and waved him closer.

Luke suddenly had a laptop on his knees and Logan sat next to him on the couch, explaining and pointing things out. Rory had moved her chair closer and leaned in, adding comments to Logan’s speech.

Luke relaxed as the discussion progressed. He noticed the natural forth and back between Rory and her boyfriend and it reminded him a little of his own bantering with Lorelai. Maybe he should give the kid a chance to prove himself. He wasn’t a prince but did come with a quasi castle after all.

Lorelai walked into the room and saw the three of them huddled together, staring at a screen and chatting. “Are you trying to teach Luke how to use a computer?” she teased and sat down on the chair that was previously occupied by Logan.

“No,” Luke scowled. “We’re checking the lighthouses for tomorrow.”

Lorelai’s eyes lit up. Luke had been so grumpy during the drive, she didn’t think he had listened to anything she’d said. She was pleased to find that he was showing actual interest. “What are you guys doing?” she asked the younger pair.

“Well, we like to hit the gym when we're here, do some shopping, hang out,” Rory said casually, knowing that Lorelai’s jaw would drop, as it did.

“You? You, Rory Gilmore, are going to the gym? Voluntarily?! I cannot picture this.”

“Well stop mocking, because it's a good thing.”

“I want to go just to see you at a gym,” Lorelai teased.

“You can come but you can’t mock. Did you guys bring sportswear?”

“Uh, nine months pregnant here,” Lorelai motioned down her body and joked, “I don’t fit in most of my sweatpants at the moment much less my yoga pants.”

Rory’s gaze rested on her mother’s abdomen, startled to realize that the due date indeed was just days away. Lorelai’s belly was much smaller than she had expected, which gave the illusion that she wasn’t that far along. There weren’t any pictures of when Lorelai had been pregnant with Rory. Apparently, nobody was particularly interested in documenting that stage of Rory’s life. Lorelai always said that she had been huge but looking at her now, Rory decided that that must have been a mild exaggeration. Standing right behind Lorelai one couldn’t even tell she was pregnant. Rory shook herself out of her musings and nodded, “Right, almost forgot. What about you Luke?”

“Oh no, I’m not really a gym person.”

“You don’t have to go to the gym, there are other things you can do. The facilities are quite big. There’s also a pool, tennis courts… or hey, we could shoot some hoops,” Logan offered but Luke didn’t feel like leaving Lorelai alone and politely declined.

“Not into sports, got it,” Logan nodded, making a mental note.

“No, I wouldn’t say that…” Luke tried to explain but was interrupted by Lorelai, “Hey, do they have hurdles? Luke _loves_ to hurdle.”

Luke scowled at Lorelai and huffed, “You _had_ to bring that up?”

“I’m still holding out hope to see you one day in those –“

“Never gonna happen!” Luke barked.

“- short shorts,” Lorelai grinned and wiggled her eyebrows at him.

Luke crossed his arms and fixed Lorelai with a challenging glare, “Fine, you wanna mock me? **_I_** know about your arrangement with your mother.”

Lorelai’s face fell. “No! How??”

Luke’s smirk grew wider. “She left a message on the machine.”

“Damn it!” Lorelai swore and immediately knew she was fighting a losing battle.

“What arrangement?” Rory asked intrigued.

Luke turned towards Rory and announced triumphantly, “Your grandmother hired a personal trainer for her and Lorelai. Apparently they signed up for a three-month intensive course.”

Rory gasped, “You’re kidding?!” and turned towards Lorelai. “And you mock me for going to the gym _once??”_

“In my defense, mother was playing dirty!” Lorelai cried wide-eyed. “She said if I don’t do it, I won’t fit into my wedding dress! Can you believe her??” Rory shrugged and opened her mouth, but Lorelai held up her forefinger and threatened, “Don’t answer that!” Rory pressed her lips together but couldn’t hold back the giggles. “At least I got her to do it with me. If I have to suffer, I might as well take her down with me!” Lorelai defended herself.

“Oh my god, please tell me you’ll videotape those sessions!” Rory laughed hysterically.

“Forget it!”

“Luke!” Rory nudged his arm, looking for support.

Luke leaned back with a satisfied grin and said, “I already bought a camcorder.”

Rory threw her fists in the air and cheered while Lorelai was outraged at his traitorous behavior.

\---

**MARTHA’S VINEYARD – SATURDAY 11 TH FEBRUARY**

The next day had started with mild panic. Lorelai had woken with immense pain in her abdomen and they had raced her to a hospital. She was bleeding which freaked Luke out and Lorelai had been crying and screaming the whole way. She almost gave birth inside his truck but they somehow managed to get her into a delivery room and the last thing she had shouted towards him was that he’d better have coffee ready for her when this was all over. Luke did not accompany her, as they had previously discussed. He hadn’t managed to get through a single birth video without feeling nauseous and having to lie down, so Lorelai decided that it was for the best to not have him in there with her.

The waiting was excruciating, and Luke was pacing up and down the waiting room when a doctor entered. Luke was all too familiar with the look on doctors’ faces when they were about to deliver bad news. Something must have gone wrong and Luke’s hands started to shake. “Mr. Danes, maybe you better sit down,” the doctor said but his body did not obey, and he was pretty sure he forgot how to breathe.

The next thing he knew he was sitting in a consultation room, opposite the doctor whose name he couldn’t remember. He realized that he was speaking but Luke’s brain refused to process the words. A single sentence made its way through.

_“Your wife died due to severe organ failure.”_

Luke stared at the person in front of him but couldn’t get his eyes to focus. He lifted one hand to rub the blurriness away and found that his face was wet. How did that happen? He wanted to ask the doctor but got distracted by a huge red mug in his other hand that looked just like the ones he had at the diner. When had he gotten coffee? He remembered that Lorelai had asked for one. It must be hers.

 _Your wife died._ His gut painfully contracted as the realization hit him and sent a shockwave through his entire body that almost made him empty his stomach contents over the doctor’s desk. Luke tried to take deep calming breaths, but every inhale filled his lungs with fire making it harder to breathe. His heart was trying to hammer itself out of his ribcage to escape the imminent pain. Someone was screaming and the sound of something shattering reached his ears. Luke looked down at the floor where a small puddle was forming around his feet. Its blackness threatened to swallow him, and cold sweat broke out all over his body. Then Luke drowned.

\---

With a loud yelp, Luke bolted upright. It took him a moment to realize where he was, while he took in the unfamiliar surroundings. Luke shivered as images from his dream flooded his senses and panic once more rolled over him. “Lorelai!” he choked out and frantically fumbled for her in the dark. The sweat-soaked t-shirt was uncomfortably clinging to his body and the cool night air sent another chill down his spine. His hands found warm skin and Luke breathed a great sigh of relief. Lorelai was sound asleep next to him without a care in the world. She was actually snoring quite loudly, but Luke’s brain hadn’t registered the noise until now. He continued running his fingers over her body to make absolutely sure she was there and alive. When he started drawing circles on her belly, he got rewarded with a small kick.

“Thank god, you’re alright,” he murmured, his voice thick with emotion.  

Luke was aware of the dangers of childbirth, but the joy of impending fatherhood had so far overtrumped those concerns. After every doctor’s appointment, they had been sent home with the words ‘everything looks great’ and he, therefore, hadn’t worried; hadn’t allowed those fears to surface. His subconscious clearly had a different agenda.

Luke was sure of one thing; he wouldn’t be strong enough to survive if anything happened to Lorelai. He knew that it wouldn’t technically be his fault, but it most definitely would be a direct consequence of his actions and he wouldn’t be able to live with that. He wanted to be a father, but not at the cost of Lorelai’s life. With those thoughts in mind, Luke came to a decision: this kid was it.

Maybe it was selfish, maybe it was irrational, but it had to be enough. He hoped Lorelai would understand.

He lay awake for a long time, trying not to think of all the things that could go wrong, secretly swearing at Lorelai for making him read all those ‘what to expect when you’re expecting’ books. They were prime class material for nightmares. Soon after he had finally fallen back asleep, Stan the raccoon started a drum concert with the trash can lids. Luke groaned, pulled the pillow over his head and prayed for a little more sleep. It wasn’t meant to be and after another hour of tossing and turning he got up. He could at least take advantage of having the hot water all to himself.

\---

“Mmmh! I know why mom keeps you around!” Rory moaned with pleasure, as she skipped into the kitchen at 7:30 and poured herself a big cup of coffee. “But you do know that you didn’t have to make us breakfast, right?”

After his long morning shower, Luke had felt a bit better and ventured into the kitchen. Cooking always had calming effects on him, even if it was just flipping burgers. He had raided the fridge and found next to fresh fruits and bacon everything he needed for pancakes. “I know, but I was up and well, here we are. Pancakes?”

“Yes, please!” Rory held up a plate eagerly and Luke laded a stack of pancakes on it with a side of bacon.

“And while your mother’s not watching, please eat some fruit, will ya?” he nodded towards the counter where a big bowl of freshly cut fruit was waiting.

“Yes, sir!” Rory saluted and spooned a healthy amount of it on her plate. Logan entered the house through the main door and held a bag along with a newspaper. He pecked Rory on the lips and gestured towards the kitchen, “Morning, what’s all this?”

“Luke made us breakfast!” Rory cheered. “I know you haven’t been to Stars Hollow yet, but you’re about to experience the best the town has to offer. Welcome to Luke’s. Try some coffee!” Rory hopped up and down on her chair like a child that had found the presents under the tree on Christmas morning.

Luke blushed at her compliments and nervously cleared his throat, “I’m sorry if I took the liberty…”

“No, please, be my guest! I’m honored, Rory’s been talking about your breakfast for forever. Made my croissant run rather redundant though.” Logan dumped the bag on the counter and shrugged out of his jacket.

“Sorry, I hope you like pancakes,” Luke apologized and offered him a full plate.

“Sure!” Logan took it and went over to the coffee maker. “So this is the actual diner coffee?” he asked and reached for the pot. It did smell phenomenal.

“Yes, it’s to die for!” Rory further praised and took a deep swig. Luke’s blush crept up higher and he was glad he could turn towards the stove. “Say, Luke, how _did_ you make the coffee? Do you travel with it?” Rory asked suddenly realizing the logistics behind having Luke’s coffee at Martha’s Vineyard.

Look shook his head and laughed, “I don’t. But I think we both know who -,”

“Coffee!!” Lorelai shouted, bouncing into the kitchen. She took the pot from Logan, filled a cup and inhaled the holy scent deeply. With a moan, she threw her head back and chanted, “IloveyouIloveyouIloveyou.”

Luke rolled his eyes and shoved a plate into her empty hand. “Thank goodness coffee isn’t a person…”

“Aw, don’t be jealous! Coffee actually is a goddess and I’ve been told she looks remarkably like me,” Lorelai fluttered her eyelashes.

Luke’s eyes involuntarily raked once over her body. “Does she now?”

“Yep! But if coffee _were_ a person, _he’d_ be wearing flannel and a backward baseball cap.” She winked at Luke and seductively took a sip, watching his pupils dilate.

“You two are ruining coffee for me,” Rory grumbled at the table and shoved her mug away.

“More for me!” Lorelai tooted and went to sit down next to her daughter.

Luke joined the breakfast table a few minutes later but before he could take his first bite a loud gasp stopped him in his tracks, leaving the fork hovering in front of his open mouth. Lorelai and Rory both stared at him in shock and Logan looked confused from one side of the table to the other asking, “What’s happening?”

“Luke! You’re eating!” Lorelai cried in horror.

Luke didn’t know how to respond to that and said, “Yes?”

“But, but, but…” Rory stammered and pointed at his plate. “Pancakes! You’re eating Pancakes! You made fruit salad and you didn’t even take any!” she shrieked.

“Are you sick?” Lorelai asked

“Are you dying?” Rory paled.

“Geez, no! I’m just hungry,” Luke protested and shoved the fork into his mouth.

Lorelai turned towards Rory and the two clasped each other’s hands. “The day has finally come. Luke has turned over to the dark side.”

“Mommy, I’m scared. Who will save the galaxy now?”

“All our hopes lie with R2-Kirk2,” Lorelai declared matter-of-factly.

Rory drooped her head and groaned, “Oh no, we’re doomed!”

Luke facepalmed and muttered, “For God’s sake,” under his breath.

Logan, who wasn’t used to a family eating breakfast together, found the bantering highly amusing.

\---

Luke and Lorelai had driven almost once around the island, visiting various lighthouses and returned to the house midday. They ventured into the small city of Edgartown for a late lunch and some window shopping. After visiting the Harbor Light, the lighthouse of Edgartown, Lorelai suggested a stroll along the beach back towards the Huntzberger residence. She sniffed the air and closed her eyes. “Ah, smell that air, sea!”

Luke stopped next to her, fists buried into jacket pockets, his chin tucked into the collar, he scrunched up his nose, “Yeah, there's sewage somewhere, too.”

Luke had been unusually silent all day and whenever he did talk, he was grumbling snarky comments. His foul mood was starting to annoy Lorelai, but when she turned towards him ready to snipe back, she was caught off guard by the sight of him. “Are you shivering?” she asked with wide eyes, fighting the urge to laugh at him.

Luke gritted his teeth to stop them from chattering and shook his head, “I’m not shivering.”

Lorelai rested her hands on her hips, “I told you to bring a winter coat.”

“This _is_ my winter coat,” he ground out stubbornly, hating that Lorelai was right.

“How is this a winter coat? It’s the same jacket you wear all year long.” Lorelai gestured towards his faded army jacket that was neither windproof nor lined. “We should go shopping,” she said and started walking again.

Luke’s shoulders sagged and he growled, “I don’t _need_ a winter coat!”

“You clearly do. One filled with feathers, that keep you warm and toasty.”

“I have one like that, it’s called my skiing jacket.”

“Then why didn’t you bring that one?” Lorelai inquired.

“We’re not skiing,” Luke pointed out.

Lorelai knitted her eyebrows. “I don’t think the jacket would notice.”

“This conversation is ridiculous.”

“You’re freezing, it’s not that crazy to buy a jacket that could counteract that.”

“Fine, I’m freezing! Happy?!” Luke shouted and threw his hands up in the air. “Now let me suffer in silence,” he hissed and angrily walked off.

Lorelai was stunned by his outburst and stared after him. Anger started to bubble inside her and she decided that enough was enough. As fast as she could she caught up with him and yanked at his arm.  “What’s with you today?!”

Luke stopped and stared at his shoes. Angry with himself he growled, “Nothing.”

Lorelai sighed in frustration and folded her arms. “Are you still upset about spending the weekend here? I thought after last night you had adjusted. What happened?”

“It’s not that. I just… I…” Luke knew he was being unreasonable. It wasn’t Lorelai’s fault that he had had a bad dream and yet he was being a total ass towards her. “I didn’t sleep well last night,” he said as if it explained anything.

“Waves keep you up?” It had surprised her how loud they were, and it had taken her a while to fall asleep.

“Yeah,” Luke lied, hoping that she’d drop the topic. He didn’t want to tell her about his dream or how scared he was about losing her. His fears had transpired into frustration and anger and although he had tried to keep his internal struggles to himself, Lorelai had noticed that something was wrong. He was mentally kicking himself for doing such a poor job at faking calmness.

“Is that it? Is that why you’re grumpier than usual? Because if you’re that miserable here than we can go home… we don’t have to stay.”

“No, no, I just had a bad night, that’s it. I didn’t mean to spoil your fun, I’m sorry.”

Lorelai looked at him for a long moment, studying his expression. She wasn’t sure if he was telling the whole truth. “Okay,” she said, removed the scarf from around her neck and handed it to Luke. “Here. I’m overheating anyway.”

Luke took it without any protest, wrapped it around himself and tucked it into his jacket. They continued walking in silence until Lorelai took his arm pressed herself into him. “I’m gonna be fine, you know.”

Luke’s eyes widened and he wondered if she had heard him during the night. Lorelai saw his shocked face and laughed, “You’re not as mysterious as you think!” She stroked his cold, stubbled cheek with the back of her warm hand and said, “I know you. You worry too much and freak yourself out, which almost always results in you being extra cranky. I’m gonna be fine, I promise.” She pressed her warm lips gently against his and Luke wanted nothing more than to melt into her. He wanted to believe her. If only it were that easy. Lorelai took his hand and lead him along. “Come on, before you get frostbite,” she grinned, and Luke managed to smile back.

\---

Luke and Lorelai arrived back at the house and found Rory standing in the kitchen with an apron on, wielding a knife. Lorelai gaped at her daughter. “I'm sorry, but this picture just does not compute.”

“Hey, great timing! I was about to call you and ask when you’ll be back. How were the lighthouses?” Rory asked, continuing chopping celery.

“Oh, you know; tall, round, light on top…” Lorelai said quickly and moved closer to Rory. “Now what are _you_ doing?”

“I am making a salad, mashed potatoes, and bruschetta,” Rory pointed out happily, earning an approving nod from Luke. “Food looks great, Rory. Can I help you with anything?” He was already shrugging out of his jacket, but Rory stopped him. “Nope, you made us breakfast, it’s our time to return the favor. Logan is outside taking care of the lobsters.”

“Can I help?” Lorelai asked. She had picked up a large kitchen knife and made chopping motions in the air.

“Step away from the knife!” Rory ordered and held up another kitchen utensil. “I’ll give you a task if you can tell me what this is.”

Lorelai took the ‘thing’ and eyed it curiously, swinging it around a little. “A waffle shaper?” she guessed, and Luke laughed out loud. Rory made a buzzer sound, “Wrong! It’s a masher for potatoes.”

“Ugh, come on, that was hard! Give me an easier one,” Lorelai protested.

Rory opened a drawer, pulled another object out and handed it over. Lorelai examined the weird-looking tool and pondered its use. “A squeezer?”

“Close,” Rory nodded. “What would you squeeze with it?”

Lorelai frowned, “I don’t know! A little tiny lemon?”

Rory made the buzzer sound again and Lorelai dropped the tool on the kitchen counter and pouted, “That wasn’t easier! You’re a meanie!”

“And you’re a danger in the kitchen,” Rory pointed out.

“You’re starting to sound just like Luke. What’s next? Flannel shirts and baseball caps??”

“Ha-ha,” Rory rolled her eyes and shooed her mother out of the kitchen. “You two just go and relax, we’ll call you when it’s ready.”

Luke knew all too well what kind of pain Lorelai could be in the kitchen when one tried to focus on cooking and steered her by the shoulders out of the kitchen to give Rory some space. They were almost at their room when Lorelai suddenly stopped and turned towards him. “Hey, did you know what that thing was?”

Luke chuckled and replied, “A garlic press.”

“Smartass,” Lorelai scoffed and stomped down the hallway, making Luke laugh even harder.

\---

Dinner had been excellent, and they were all leaning back in their chairs. Rory was pleased that they had finished off almost all the food. She had been a little nervous to cook for Luke since she still was a raw beginner and didn’t want to make him eat something subpar. She glanced at his plate and smiled. “Luke, weren't you a lobster neophyte? Looks like you liked it.”

“It's good,” Luke nodded approvingly. “I can't believe I've never had it before. You cooked them perfect,” he told Logan. He really was quite impressed with the boy’s cooking skills. Logan blushed and thanked Luke for the compliment. “You did good too, Rory. It was a great dinner,” Luke added and started to clear the table.

“Here, here,” Lorelai raised her water glass and took a sip.

“I’m glad to see you’re not following in your mother’s footsteps for that matter,” Luke said to Rory and smiled cheekily.

“Hey, I wanted to help but wasn’t allowed!” Lorelai protested and swatted Luke’s arm.

“You need the equivalent of potty training before anybody should give you access to a kitchen,” he stated, and Rory giggled into her napkin.

Luke expertly piled plates, salad bowls, and cutlery onto his left forearm. Rory stood up to collect some glasses and said, “Let me help you,” but Luke thankfully declined. “You cooked, I do the dishes. Besides, I’ve heard Lorelai is desperate to help out in the kitchen.”

Lorelai threw her napkin at Luke’s face. It slid down his chest and nicely landed on top of the plates Luke was still balancing on his arm. “You’re lucky I actually like washing dishes.”

“So I’ve heard, and yet no proof.”

“Why would I wash them by hand when I have a perfectly good dishwasher sitting in my kitchen?”

“You can’t put everything in there. See, potty training,” Luke pointed out, and dodged the second flying napkin. With a smirk, he turned towards the kitchen and said, “Now if you’ll excuse me, my arm’s about to fall off.”

\---

Like the evening before, everyone was gathered in the living room. Logan was engrossed in a game on his PlayStation Portable and Rory was reading again. She had put on jazz that matched the crackling fire which bathed the room in a pleasant light.

After cleaning up the kitchen Luke walked into the living room more confidently than the night before. Partially because Lorelai was already sitting on the couch, knitting a dark blue baby hat, but also because he had gotten used to the house and being around Logan. He sat down next to Lorelai, fished a paperback out of his back pocket and flipped it open. Rory had caught the movement and tried to hide a smile behind her own book. She wondered if Luke knew how much he and Jess were alike.

“What are you reading?” she asked even though she already knew the answer. Luke held up the book so she could read the cover and smiled. ‘Moneyball’ had been a Christmas present from her and she was happy to see him actually read it.

“You?” he asked, and Rory’s smile grew wider. She held up her own book and Luke immediately recognized it; the book he had gifted her for Christmas. “Any good? If not I absolutely blame that guy at Barnes & Noble.” Luke had been in the bookstore for over an hour, describing Rory’s taste to the bookseller until they had settled on ‘The Book Thief’.

“Yes, very good, but I’m scared it’s going to end badly. It is a Holocaust story and they tend to be tearjerkers.”

“Ah, yes. Let’s hope for the best.”

“What about you? Do you like yours?”

“Sure, baseball and analytics, can’t go wrong with that.”

“Nerd!” Lorelai called out and teased him with her toes.

Luke caught one foot and tickled her sole making Lorelai instantly laugh out loud. She wriggled against his grip and gasped for air. “I’ll massage your feet if you behave,” he offered and held her leg still.

“Hunk!” Lorelai panted and scooted closer, laying her other foot into Luke’s lap.

“Much better,” he grinned and kneaded circles into her sole with his strong fingers. Lorelai relaxed into the couch cushions and closed her eyes. “God,” she moaned as Luke worked his magic.

“Now you’re overcompensating,” Luke joked, picked up his book with the left hand and continued his administrations with his right.

“Angel, hero, my knight in shining armor,” she crooned and snickered to herself. Luke rolled his eyes and smirked, “And don’t you forget it.”

Rory had followed the conversation and a feeling of great contentment warmed her heart. So that's what it felt like to grow up with both parents present. She definitely could get used to that.

\---

**MARTHA’S VINEYARD – SUNDAY 12 TH FEBRUARY - MORNING**

Luke rolled over in bed and noticed that Lorelai was already awake. He kissed her shoulder and mumbled, “Morning,” into her hair, his hand rubbing gently up and down her arm.

“Good morning,” Lorelai smiled sleepily. “How'd you sleep? Waves keep you up again?”

Luke shook his head and pulled Lorelai closer, “No, I slept like a rock. How about you?”

“Wonderfully, actually,” Lorelai hummed and stretched like a cat, turning around to face Luke while doing so. The bright light coming through the window temporarily blinded her and she blinked, then gasped, “Oh, look, it’s snowing!”

Luke glanced over his shoulder and watched the chunky snowflakes slowly fall to the ground. He turned back and captured her lips in a soaring kiss, leaving Lorelai breathless. “Another good reason to stay in bed,” he said, his deep morning voice rumbled through his chest. Lorelai’s hands found their way under his t-shirt and she pulled him as close as possible, then decided the t-shirt was getting in the way anyway and made short work of it, tossing it to the floor. Luke smirked at her eagerness and turned Lorelai on her back, bracing his weight on his arms, not to crush Lorelai or the baby beneath him. “I’m really starting to enjoy this weekend,” he grinned and carefully bent down to kiss her again. Lorelai hummed her approval and locked her hands behind his neck, keeping Luke in place.

“Good, I hope you enjoy what’s coming next,” she purred, her hands had wandered down his back and gave his ass a good squeeze. His obvious arousal pressed into her swollen belly and Luke groaned. Lorelai pulled her fleece pajama shirt over her head and expected Luke’s eyes to heat up as they raked over her body.

Instead, he shrugged and added indifferently, “It will do.”

Lorelai’s smug smile slipped off her face and her mouth hung open in mortification. She stared up and him and tried to cover herself up with her arms. Luke shook his head softly, the corner of his mouth twitched. He bent down to place a kiss behind her ear and breathed, “Lorelai.” He lifted his head back up and was just inches away from hers. Their eyes locked and the fire Lorelai had been waiting for was now evident in his dark blue eyes. “You’re beautiful,” he said and closed the gap between them. Then Luke started to place kisses down her body to show her exactly how beautiful he thought she was.

\---

Luke lay sprawled out on his back, eyes closed, satisfied grin on his face. Lorelai was tucked into his side, one arm lazily thrown over his chest. She sighed and started to roll away, but Luke immediately wrapped his arms around her and whispered, “Stay.” He kissed her forehead and breathed in the scent of her shampoo; apricot.

“I can’t.” She nudged him away. “I _really_ have to pee and I’m starving.” Luke chuckled and released her. On her way to the bathroom she collected her pajamas and gown and closed the door. Luke didn’t move for several minutes but without Lorelai’s warm body against his, he realized that the room wasn’t as warm as it had felt before and got up, looking for his own pajamas. He had managed to find his boxer briefs and pants and was still looking for his t-shirt that Lorelai had flung somewhere when she came back out of the bathroom. “I wonder if Rory and Logan hit the gym again. I'm going to go check.”

“I wouldn't put it past them,” he said absentmindedly, scratching the back of his head, still searching the room with his eyes.

“Or maybe they went hang gliding, went to climb a mountain, pearl diving, or skeet shooting.” Lorelai opened the door and gasped, “Wow!”

“What?”

Lorelai carried a tray into the bedroom, loaded with food, orange juice and a coffee pot that stood on top of a pot warmer. “The kids must have left it for us,” she beamed and carefully walked over to the bed, putting it down.

Luke didn’t pay much attention to the breakfast tray. He stood with his hands on his hips and cocked his head, “Where’s my top?”

Lorelai opened the dressing gown and revealed Luke’s long-sleeved shirt underneath. She grinned sheepishly and hugged herself. “It’s so warm and comfy and smells like you.”

“Thief!” Luke glowered with mock annoyance and got another long-sleeved shirt out of his bag. He climbed into bed next to her and watched her expectantly.

“So, how do we do this?” she asked, gesturing to the tray.

“Legs,” Luke pointed out, lifted the tray, folded them down and waited for Lorelai to climb in bed and placed it over her legs.

“Service here is so excellent,” she hummed and poured herself some coffee but wrinkled her nose after the first sip. “Not as good as yours though… You should teach Rory how to make _your_ coffee so she can fully transform into you.”

Luke rolled his eyes while buttering a toast and said, “And lose my best customer? I don’t think so.”

“I thought I was your best customer!”

“I’m not teaching you either. You already drink too much of that stuff as is.”

“You don’t have to teach me. I for one like being served and you better get your A-game ready because I have nine months of catching up to do.”

“God help me!” Luke chuckled and bit into his toast.

A loud noise interrupted their breakfast and they looked at each other with raised eyebrows just as a blonde man dressed in a well-cut suit and elegant overcoat entered the room. According to his facial expression, Luke and Lorelai were clearly not the people he had expected to find. “Who are you?” he asked sharply, eyeballing them. Lorelai self-consciously pulled the comforter higher and Luke tensed. “Who are you?” he shot back.

“Mitchum Huntzberger,” the man said and repeated, “Who are you?”

Lorelai’s eyes widened and she stammered, “Uhm, I'm Lorelai. I'm Rory’s mother.”

Mitchum nodded once. “I’m looking for my son.”

Right then they heard Logan call out for his father and Mitchum turned around on his heels, leaving the bedroom. Luke and Lorelai exchange awkward glances.

\---

A few minutes later Luke walked into the entrance area, now dressed in his usual attire. Mr. Huntzberger was shouting, “You embarrassed me, you embarrassed yourself! You listen to me; you're getting on a plane to London. You're getting on a plane to London _today!_ And let me tell you this; you better start acclimating yourself, because you're in London for at least a year starting the day after you graduate, as we discussed. I'm getting you to the airport myself _right now!_ Get packed. You've got 10 minutes!”

“I have guests,” Logan argued weakly, visibly embarrassed by his father’s intrusion.

Mitchum looked towards Rory, who stood several steps behind Logan. “Your guests can stay.”

Luke cleared his throat and said with a shaky voice, “Actually, I was wondering if this island has a hospital because I’m pretty sure Lorelai’s water just broke.”

Three shocked faces turned towards Luke, who nervously wrung his hands, trying his hardest not to panic.

\---

  1. **JOSEPH HOSPITAL - HARTFORD – AFTERNOON**



Only three hours later Lorelai was being pushed in a wheelchair through hospital corridors. After the initial shock had passed, Mitchum had sprung into action and ordered everyone to follow him to the heliport, where his private aircraft was waiting for him. Since he was planning on getting his son on the next flight to London via Hartford airport, he had decided that making a quick detour and drop the three guests off at the hospital wouldn’t be a problem.

Lorelai was shaking with laughter, the pain of her last contraction already forgotten. “Who would have thought that Luke Danes gets motion sickness in a helicopter!” she wheezed.

Luke was hurrying along, carrying their bags and didn’t look amused at all. “You _had to_ go into labor during a freaking snowstorm?!” he hissed through clenched teeth, still a little shaky and pale, and not just because flying didn’t agree with him. Lorelai’s contractions had started to come in fairly regularly and with more force midway and Luke was scared to death that he’ll have to deliver the baby on board.

Rory, who had been very quiet since Luke had broken the news, was following with quite some distance. Just before taking off again, Logan had thrust a small digital camera into her hands and she was holding onto it like a lifeline.

They were brought into a room and a nurse gave Lorelai hospital garbs and a gown she could change into. “Alright Ms. Gilmore, Dr. Santiago will be with you shortly. Is there anything you need right away?”

“I’m fine, thank you. I wouldn’t say no to coffee though,” she batted her eyelids at Luke, but Rory shouted, “I’ll get some!” and scurried out the room.

“Rory wait!” Lorelai called after her and Rory whirled around. “Could you bring tea and a banana or something like that for Luke?”

Luke wanted to protest but Rory nodded and quickly retreated. Lorelai turned towards Luke and said, “Could you call Sookie and tell her it’s happening? She’ll know what to do.”

\---

Luke sat in front of the room, staring at his shoes when Rory returned with the drinks. “Is everything okay?” she asked worriedly and handed Luke a cup.

“Oh yeah, they are doing some tests…”

They could hear Lorelai groan through the closed door and Luke winced, tightening the grip around his cup.  

“Are you nervous?”

“No,” Luke lied, trying his best to remain calm, but when Lorelai swore like a sailor through the next contraction his resistance crumbled. “I have never been more scared in my life.”

Rory sat down next to him and patted his knee. “It’s gonna be fine. She’s done it before.”

The door opened and Dr. Santiago stepped out. “You arrived just in time. Everything is good to go.” Two nurses started pushing Lorelai’s bed out the door. “Miss Gilmore, I will be with you in a minute.” Dr. Santiago turned to Luke and asked, “Will you be joining us?”

“Yes,” Luke answered determinedly but Lorelai objected, “Oh no! He’ll stay right here, or you are going to have a second patient at hand!”

“I’m not leaving you alone.”

“Luke, I thought we talked about this?”

“I changed my mind,” Luke insisted and turned back to the doctor, “What do I have to do?”

“Jenkins will get you prepped,” Santiago motioned towards a nurse. Lorelai groaned louder and Luke paled a little more but nodded and followed the elder nurse down the hall.

“Showtime,” Santiago grinned and rubbed her hands together.

\---

Emily and Richard walked into the waiting room, where Rory was curled up on a chair. She had been reading the same paragraph over and over again, not grasping a single word and the arrival of her grandparents sent a wave of relief through her.

“Goodness, here you are,” Emily called. “This hospital urgently needs to put up direction signs! It’s an absolute disaster. We were wandering around for ten minutes and not a single person could tell us what way to go!”

Rory abandoned her book, ignored her grandmother’s ramblings and flung her arms around Richard’s neck. “I’m so glad you’re here!”

Rory’s outburst startled Emily and she asked, “Is everything alright? Where is your mother?”

Rory went on to hug her grandmother as well and replied, “They went into the delivery room twenty minutes ago, and last I heard everything’s good.”

“She’s already in the delivery room? Why didn’t you call us earlier?! Then we wouldn’t have had to suffer through that abominable speech by Albert Bergmann about child labor in Cambodia. He told horrendous stories that made the wine go sour. Not that it could have gotten any worse anyway. They really skimped on the event’s budget this year, one wonders where all that charity money went. But thank goodness Richard accepted this invitation and didn’t attend this year’s award ceremony in Seattle. He’d have been out of town and completely missed it! Of course this could have been avoided if your mother had confirmed the due date. We had to keep almost all of February open just for this occasion.”

The door opened again and Sookie and Jackson burst into the room, interrupting Emily’s rant. Sookie immediately wrapped Rory into a bone-crushing hug, tears were already streaming down her cheeks. “Sorry, we’re late! We had trouble finding a nanny so quickly, then your front door was stuck and when we finally managed to break in, I couldn’t find the bag Luke said was ready for the baby, but then I did and we were on the way but the roads are horrible! There’s snow coming from all directions and I thought we weren’t gonna make it! Did we make it?? Oh my god, I can’t believe it’s happening!!” Sookie squealed, her voice had gotten higher and higher with every word. Rory knew from experience that Sookie was close to hyperventilating and patted her back in a calming way.

“She wasn’t that excited when it was our babies,” Jackson complained and got nudged in the ribs by Sookie’s elbow. “Of course I was excited, it’s just so much more fun when it isn’t your vagina getting destroyed! So did we miss it?”

Rory laughed out loud at her grandparents’ shocked faces and gave Sookie’s arm one last squeeze. “You didn’t miss anything. The show’s only just begun. Grandma, Grandpa you remember Sookie and Jackson.”

They greeted each other and all took seats. The waiting game had begun.

\---

Luke stood frozen to the spot next to Lorelai’s head, staring at their interlocked hands. He couldn’t look at Lorelai’s pain distorted face without feeling guilty for putting her through this. He also couldn’t look down to where the bloody action was taking place without feeling his knees going weak. So he stood and focused on his left hand that was being crushed to mush by Lorelai’s death grip. A nonsensical string of swearwords left her lips so fast half of it remained inapprehensible and then she slumped back into the pillows, gasping for breath. A little voice announcing itself to the world.

Luke’s head snapped around as Dr. Santiago held the tiny person up in the air for them both to see. “Congratulations, we have a winner,” the doctor spoke through her surgical mask and Lorelai’s fogged brain thought she was in the opening scene of The Lion King. A gurgle, some blubbering and a yawn were all it took for Luke and Lorelai to fall utterly and completely in love with their son.

Big scissors were brought forward, and Luke quickly turned his attention towards the ceiling, mumbling, “Ah geez!” under his breath.

“Mr. Danes would you like to give your son his first bath?” Jenkins looked at him expectantly.

“Would I… what?” Luke helplessly looked down at Lorelai, overwhelmed in every sense. Lorelai smiled a tired but loving smile and gave Luke’s hand a gentle squeeze. “Please, stay with him, Luke. I’m still kind of busy here…”

Luke remembered what came next for Lorelai and he really did not want to be present for that. “Right, of course.” He extracted his numb fingers from her clutches and flexed them to get blood back into those veins. The nurse led him over to a large tub that was already filled with warm water. She showed Luke how to hold his baby, but he was too aw-struck to absorb any instructions. The nurse simply smiled and did most of the washing herself while Luke just cradled his son in his hands. “Are they always this pink?” Luke asked, comparing his own skin color to the baby. It had almost the same unnatural complexion as his left hand, which was flaming red and hurt like hell.

The nurse chuckled and wrapped a white towel around the little boy, further accentuating the sharp contrast. “He looks perfectly healthy, but I’ll quickly give him a once over to make sure.” He got weighed and measured, all his fingers and toes were being counted, and the heart and lungs were checked. “Did you bring specific clothes you’d like me to put on him?”

Luke’s face fell as he realized how unprepared they were. “Aw man! Our friends are bringing the bag, but I don’t know if they’re here yet. We didn’t arrive quite the way we’d planned…”

“Yeah, I bet! Heard you arrived by helicopter,” the nurse grinned and got a little onesie out of a drawer.

“Yeah,” Luke chortled. “Can’t believe that really happened…”

“Alright, we’re done here.” She handed Luke his wrapped-up son, who immediately got enchanted by the sleeping baby in his arms. “And so is your wife,” she nodded towards the other side of the room.

“Huh?” Luke whirled around to see that Lorelai was back in a wheelchair, being brought out the room. He had almost forgotten that she was there and inwardly cursed himself. “Right. You must think I’m an idiot,” he smiled weakly and followed Lorelai and the other nurse through the corridor.

“No, just a first-time father,” Jenkins assured him and opened the door to the room they had previously been in. The word slowly sunk in and Luke’s smile grew wider. His eyes sparkled with pure adoration as he looked down at his son again and whispered, “I’m a father.”

“Show me,” Lorelai’s voice reached his ears and he looked up. She was sitting on a newly made bed and although her curls were a bit tousled and her cheeks were flushed, Luke thought she had never looked more beautiful. He carefully handed their little boy to her and pulled a chair close to the bedside, sinking down on it. His eyes never left the baby’s face.

Lorelai cradled her son. Her son! She couldn’t quite believe that he was there and that she was a mom again. “Oh Luke, he’s perfect,” she whispered and brushed a tear away before it could fall. Luke laid his left arm around Lorelai’s back and his right in her lap. His fingers gently stroked the boy’s dark soft hair. He leaned in and brushed his lips against hers in a featherlight kiss. “Thank you.”

“What for?”

Luke thought a moment about their weekend at the vineyard, about the months of pregnancy and their shared time as an engaged couple. When they had started dating, he’d never thought that only eighteen months later he’d be here. “Everything.”

He didn’t have to say anything more, Lorelai understood. Luke turned his attention back to the little man who had begun stirring in his sleep and Lorelai intently watched Luke watching his son. She had always enjoyed observing Luke’s reactions, be it during movies, town meetings, or arguments with Taylor. His emotions always clearly played out on his face and it was no different now. She began tracing his features with her fingers, starting at his brow and ran her index down his cheek, past the crinkles in the corner of his eye, over the high cheekbone, down to the corner of his mouth and over the lower lip.

Luke tilted his head to look at Lorelai and asked, “What are you doing?”

“Committing your face to memory,” she answered absentmindedly while wandering with her fingers along his jawline.

Luke winged an eyebrow questioningly which didn’t please Lorelai. “Nooo, look at him again,” she ordered and tugged at his chin. Luke turned his face albeit somewhat irritated by Lorelai and looked down. As soon as his eyes fell back on the tiny face, framed by the white cotton blanket, he couldn’t help but grin once more.

“Ah, there it is,” Lorelai beamed. “The biggest smile I’ve ever seen.”

Luke chuckled and rubbed both hands over his cheeks. “Yeah, I think I’ve pulled a muscle,” he joked, but the smile stayed in place.

\---

Rory quietly knocked on the door and popped her head in. “Mom? Can we come in?”

“Yes, come in, come in.”

Rory, followed by Sookie, rushed to Lorelai and they hugged and whispered and gushed over the little bundle of joy Lorelai held in her arms. Jackson gave Luke’s shoulder a manly slap and the two men exchanged smirks and nods. Richard and Emily stood at the foot of the bed and watched. Emily held onto Richard’s arm and tried her hardest no to show her emotions, while Richard abandoned all pretense and let the tears run freely as he proudly gazed down onto his grandson.

Lorelai looked at her parents, tears stinging her own eyes. She smiled, sat up a little straighter so they could see better and said, “Everyone, meet our son, William Jacob Danes.


End file.
